Cold Atoms In Optical Lattices Research Articles

Dissipative preparation of Chern insulators

Engineered dissipation can be employed to prepare interesting quantum many body states in a non-equilibrium fashion. The basic idea is to obtain the state of interest as the unique steady state of a quantum master equation, irrespective of the initial state. Due to a fundamental competition of topology and locality, the dissipative preparation of gapped topological phases with a non-vanishing Chern number has so far remained elusive. Here, we study the open quantum system dynamics of fermions on a two-dimensional lattice in the framework of a Lindblad master equation. In particular, we discover a mechanism to dissipatively prepare a topological steady state with non-zero Chern number by means of short-range system bath interaction. Quite remarkably, this gives rise to a stable topological phase in a non-equilibrium phase diagram. We demonstrate how our theoretical construction can be implemented in a microscopic model that is experimentally feasible with cold atoms in optical lattices.

Symmetric coordinates in solids: magnetic Bloch oscillations

There has recently been a revival of the Bloch theory of energy bands in solids. This revival was caused, on one hand, by the discovery of topological insulators and the discovery of graphene, and, on the other end, by a very efficient new technique that was developed for creating artificial solids. These are the cold atoms in optical lattices. Last year geometric phases were measured in energy bands of cold atoms in a one-dimensional optical lattice by using Bloch oscillations. These phases are related to the Wyckoff positions, or the symmetry centers in the Bravais lattice. In this lecture a theoretical frame is developed for magnetic Bloch oscillations, meaning oscillations in the presence of a magnetic field. The theory is based on the kq-representation and the symmetric coordinates in solids. It is shown that for a Bloch electron in a magnetic field the orbit quasi-center is a conserved quantity. This is similar to the conservation of the quasi-momentum for an electron in a periodic potential. When an electric field is turned on, the orbit quasi-center oscillates in a similar way to the Bloch oscillations in the absence of a magnetic field. But there is a difference because the magnetic Brillouin zone is different. It depends on the strength of the magnetic field. An analogy is drawn between Bloch oscillations and magnetic Bloch oscillations. By using the magnetic translations it is indicated that a magnetic Wannier-Stark ladder appears in the spectrum of a Bloch electron in crossed magnetic and electric fields. The geometric phases for magnetic Bloch oscillations should be magnetic field dependent.

Topological Hofstadter insulators in a two-dimensional quasicrystal

We investigate the properties of a two-dimensional quasicrystal in the presence of a uniform magnetic field. In this configuration, the density of states (DOS) displays a Hofstadter butterfly-like structure when it is represented as a function of the magnetic flux per tile. We show that the low-DOS regions of the energy spectrum are associated with chiral edge states, in direct analogy with the Chern insulators realized with periodic lattices. We establish the topological nature of the edge states by computing the topological Chern number associated with the bulk of the quasicrystal. This topological characterization of the non-periodic lattice is achieved through a local (real-space) topological marker. This work opens a route for the exploration of topological insulating materials in a wide range of non-periodic lattice systems, including photonic crystals and cold atoms in optical lattices.

Instability of insulating states in optical lattices due to collective phonon excitations

The role of collective phonon excitations on the properties of cold atoms in optical lattices is investigated. These phonon excitations are collective excitations, whose appearance is caused by intersite atomic interactions correlating the atoms, and they do not arise without such interactions. These collective excitations should not be confused with lattice vibrations produced by an external force. No such a force is assumed. But the considered phonons are purely self-organized collective excitations, characterizing atomic oscillations around lattice sites, due to intersite atomic interactions. It is shown that these excitations can essentially influence the possibility of atoms to be localized. The states that would be insulating in the absence of phonon excitations can become delocalized when these excitations are taken into account. This concerns long-range as well as local atomic interactions. To characterize the region of stability, the Lindemann criterion is used.

Spontaneous formation of a nonuniform chiral spin liquid in a moat-band lattice.

A number of lattices exhibit moatlike band structures, i.e., a band with infinitely degenerate energy minima attained along a closed line in the Brillouin zone. If such a lattice is populated with hard-core bosons, the degeneracy prevents their condensation. At half-filling, the system is equivalent to the s=1/2 XY model at a zero magnetic field, while the absence of condensation translates into the absence of magnetic order in the XY plane. Here, we show that the ground state breaks time reversal as well as inversion symmetries. This state, which may be identified with the chiral spin liquid, has a bulk gap and chiral gapless edge excitations. The applications of the developed analytical theory include an explanation of recent numerical findings and a suggestion for the chiral spin liquid realizations in experiments with cold atoms in optical lattices.

Quantum ratchet with photons

Quantum simulation is one of the most important applications of quantum computers. Unlike full-scale quantum computing where hundreds of qubits are required, quantum simulation can be performed at small-scale quantum information processing system. In a recent work [1], Zhang et al. from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) have experimentally demonstrated a quantum simulation of an interesting phenomenon with photons, the quantum ratchet. A classical ratchet is a spatially periodic rotor in which the directed motion of particles can be realized without a bias force. Similarly, in a quantum ratchet, a quantum particle is directed evolved under apparent no bias force. Quantum ratchet effect has attracted much attention recently. The effect may exist in many quantum systems [2], and it was demonstrated with cold atoms in optical lattice [3]. This quantum effect plays a crucial role in many related studies, such as dynamical localization, quantum resonance, and quantum chaos, and has potential applications in solving the evolution of wave functions. Researchers in USTC elaborately created a delta-kicked Hamiltonian quantum ratchet [4] in an all-optical system, and this quantum rotor is driven by Hamiltonian chaos, in the absence of noise. Directed motion and quantum resonance are observed. They constructed successfully a delta-kicked potential for light by a phase mirror which is the key of the periodically flashing potential in the experiment and the potential is determined by the etched depth of the phase mirror. The quantum particle is the photons which are reflected between a plane mirror and the phase mirror, and these photons encounter the phase mirror again and again with a certain temporal interval. In order to obtain the momentum information, they use skillfully a cylindrical lens to convert the pattern of the position distribution into that of the momentum distribution on the focal plane of the lens. They eventually successfully observed the quantum ratchet and quantum resonance in the experiment in the momentum and kinetic energy space with photons. Since the experiment is performed using classical light, the effects can be even observed with a naked eye for up to 22 steps. Compared to the massive quantum ratchet, photons have longer wavelength which provides longer spatial period and makes the quantum ratchet easier to control and measure. Light is easy to be coherently controlled and detected. The approach and the result provided here are significant to simulate other quantum phenomena.

On the low lying spectrum of the magnetic Schrödinger operator with kagome periodicity

In a semi-classical regime, we study a periodic magnetic Schrödinger operator in ℝ2. This is inspired by recent experiments on artificial magnetism with ultra cold atoms in optical lattices, and by the new interest for the operator on the hexagonal lattice describing the behavior of an electron in a graphene sheet. We first review some results for the square (Harper), triangular and hexagonal lattices. Then, we study the case when the periodicity is given by the kagome lattice considered by Hou. Following the techniques introduced by Helffer–Sjöstrand and Carlsson, we reduce this problem to the study of a discrete operator on ℓ2(ℤ2;ℂ3) and a pseudo-differential operator on L2(ℝ;ℂ3), which keep the symmetries of the kagome lattice. We estimate the coefficients of these operators in the case of a weak constant magnetic field. Plotting the spectrum for rational values of the magnetic flux divided by 2πh where h is the semi-classical parameter, we obtain a picture similar to Hofstadter's butterfly. We study the properties of this picture and prove the symmetries of the spectrum and the existence of flat bands, which do not occur in the case of the three previous models.

Exploring unconventional Hubbard models with doubly modulated lattice gases.

Recent experiments show that periodic modulations of cold atoms in optical lattices may be used to engineer and explore interesting models. We show that double modulation combining lattice shaking and modulated interactions allows for the engineering of a much broader class of lattice with correlated hopping, which we study for the particular case of one-dimensional systems. We show, in particular, that by using this double modulation it is possible to study Hubbard models with asymmetric hopping, which, contrary to the standard Hubbard model, present insulating phases with both parity and string order. Moreover, double modulation allows for the simulation of lattice models in unconventional parameter regimes, as we illustrate for the case of the spin-1/2 Fermi-Hubbard model with correlated hopping, a relevant model for cuprate superconductors.

Quantum oscillations of magnetization in tight-binding electrons on a honeycomb lattice

We show that the new quantum oscillations of the magnetization can occur when the Fermi surface consists of points (massless Dirac points) or even when the chemical potential is in a energy gap by studying the tight-binding electrons on a honeycomb lattice in a uniform magnetic field. The quantum oscillations of the magnetization as a function of the inverse magnetic field are known as the de Haas-van Alphen (dHvA) oscillations and the frequency is proportional to the area of the Fermi surface. The dominant period of the new oscillations corresponds to the area of the first Brillouin zone and its phase is zero. The origin of the new quantum oscillations is the characteristic magnetic field dependence of the energy known as the Hofstadter butterfly and the Harper broadening of Landau levels. The new oscillations are not caused by the crossing of the chemical potential and Landau levels, which is the case in the dHvA oscillations. The new oscillations can be observed experimentally in systems with large supercell such as graphene antidot lattice or ultra cold atoms in optical lattice at an external magnetic field of a few Tesla when the area of the supercell is ten thousand times larger than that of graphene.

The ground state phase diagrams and low-energy excitation of dimer XXZ spin ladder

We study the ground state and low-energy excitation of dimer XXZ spin ladder with Heisenberg and XXZ interactions along the rung and rail directions, respectively. Using a bond operator method, we get low-energy effective Hamiltonians in different parameter regions. Based on those low-energy effective Hamiltonians, we set up the ground state phase diagrams and investigate the properties of low-energy excitation in each phase. We will show that the results are exact one when the XXZ interactions along rail reduce to the Ising type. The quantum Monte Carlo and exact diagonalization methods are also applied to the finite system to verify the exact nature of the phases, the phase transitions and the low-energy excitation. Of all the phases, we pay a special attention to the gapped antiferromagnetic phase, which is disclosed to be a non-trivial one that exhibits the time-reversal symmetry. We also discuss how our findings could be realized and detected by using cold atoms in optical lattice.

Detection of Chern numbers and entanglement in topological two-species systems through subsystem winding numbers

Topological invariants, such as the Chern number, characterize topological phases of matter. Here we provide a method to detect Chern numbers in systems with two distinct species of fermion, such as spins, orbitals or several atomic states. We analytically show that the Chern number can be decomposed as a sum of component specific winding numbers, which are themselves physically observable. We apply this method to two systems, the quantum spin Hall insulator and a staggered topological superconductor, and show that (spin) Chern numbers are accurately reproduced. The measurements required for constructing the component winding numbers also enable one to probe the entanglement spectrum with respect to component partitions. Our method is particularly suited to experiments with cold atoms in optical lattices where time-of-flight images can give direct access to the relevant observables.

General features of the relaxation dynamics of interacting quantum systems

We study numerically and analytically isolated interacting quantum systems that are taken out of equilibrium instantaneously (quenched). The probability of finding the initial state in time, the so-called fidelity, decays fastest for systems described by full random matrices, where simultaneous many-body interactions are implied. In the realm of realistic systems with two-body interactions, the dynamics is slower and depends on the interplay between the initial state and the Hamiltonian characterizing the system. The fastest fidelity decay in this case is Gaussian and can persist until saturation. A simple general picture, in which the fidelity plays a central role, is also achieved for the short-time dynamics of few-body observables. It holds for initial states that are eigenstates of the observables. We also discuss the need to reassess analytical expressions that were previously proposed to describe the evolution of the Shannon entropy. Our analyses are mainly developed for initial states that can be prepared in experiments with cold atoms in optical lattices.

Deep laser cooling of magnesium atoms using a 33P2→33D3 dipole transition

We present the theoretical analysis of sub-Doppler laser cooling of 24Mg atoms using dipole transition 33P2→33D3 under two counterpropagating light waves with opposite circular polarizations (one-dimensional σ+σ– configuration). For numerical calculations the standard semi-classical approach based on the Fokker–Planck equation for linear momentum distribution of atoms is exploited. The distributions are gained beyond the limits of slow atoms approximation and for an arbitrary light field intensity. The absence of these limits allows us to determine the optimal parameters of the light field to maximize a fraction of ultracold atoms (T ~ 10 μK) in a whole atomic cloud. In particular, under certain conditions the fraction can reach a value of 50%. Solution of the existing problems in deep laser cooling of magnesium atoms has obvious prospects for atomic optics and quantum metrology: for instance, in designing new-generation optical frequency and time standards based on cold atoms in optical lattices.

Tensor Networks for Lattice Gauge Theories and Atomic Quantum Simulation

We show that gauge invariant quantum link models, Abelian and non-Abelian, can be exactly described in terms of tensor networks states. Quantum link models represent an ideal bridge between high-energy to cold atom physics, as they can be used in cold-atoms in optical lattices to study lattice gauge theories. In this framework, we characterize the phase diagram of a (1+1)-d quantum link version of the Schwinger model in an external classical background electric field: the quantum phase transition from a charge and parity ordered phase with non-zero electric flux to a disordered one with a net zero electric flux configuration is described by the Ising universality class.

Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov or Majorana superfluids: The fate of fermionic cold atoms in spin-orbit-coupled optical lattices

The recent experimental realization of spin-orbit (SO) coupling for ultracold atoms opens a completely new avenue for exploring new quantum matters. In experiments, the SO coupling is implemented simultaneously with a Zeeman field. Such SO-coupled Fermi gases are predicted to support Majorana fermions with non-Abelian exchange statistics in one dimension (1D). However, as shown in recent theory and experiments for 1D spin-imbalanced Fermi gases, the Zeeman field can lead to the long-sought Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov (FFLO) superfluids with nonzero center-of-mass momentum Cooper pairings, in contrast to the zero center-of-mass momentum pairings in Majorana superfluids. Therefore a natural question to ask is which phase, FFLO or Majorana superfluids, will survive in SO-coupled Fermi gases in the presence of a large out-of-plane Zeeman field. In this paper, we address this question by studying the mean-field quantum phases of 1D (quasi-1D) SO-coupled fermionic cold-atom optical lattices.

Inhomogeneous BCS-BEC crossover for trapped cold atoms in optical lattices

The BCS-BEC crossover in a lattice is a powerful paradigm to understand how a superconductor deviates from the Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer physics as the attractive interaction increases. Optical lattices loaded with binary mixtures of cold atoms allow to address it experimentally in a clean and controlled way. We show that, however, the possibility to study this phenomenon in actual cold-atoms experiments is limited by the effect of the trapping potential. Real-space Dynamical Mean-Field Theory calculations show indeed that interactions and the confining potential conspire to pack the fermions in the center of the trap, which approaches a band insulator when the attraction become sizeable. We show how this physics reflects in several observables, and we propose an alternative strategy to disentangle the effect of the harmonic potential and measure the intrinsic properties resulting from the interaction strength.

Thermometry of Cold Atoms in Optical Lattices via Artificial Gauge Fields

Artificial gauge fields are a unique way of manipulating the motional state of cold atoms. Here we propose the use (practical or conceptual) of artificial gauge fields--obtained, e.g., experimentally via lattice shaking or conceptually via a Galilean transformation--to perform primary noise thermometry of cold atoms in optical lattices, not requiring any form of prior calibration. The proposed thermometric scheme relies on fundamental fluctuation--dissipation relations, connecting the global response to the variation of the applied gauge field and the fluctuation of quantities related to the momentum distribution (such as the average kinetic energy or the average current). We demonstrate gauge-field thermometry for several physical situations, including free fermions and interacting bosons. The proposed approach is extremely robust to quantum fluctuations-even in the vicinity of a quantum phase transition--when it relies on the thermal fluctuations of an emerging classical field, associated with the onset of Bose condensation or chiral order.

Lattice scars: surviving in an open discrete billiard

We study quantum systems on a discrete bounded lattice (lattice billiards). The statistical properties of their spectra show universal features related to the regular or chaotic character of their classical continuum counterparts. However, the decay dynamics of the open systems appear very different from the continuum case, their properties being dominated by the states in the band center. We identify a class of states (‘lattice scars’) that survive for infinite times in dissipative systems and that are degenerate at the center of the band. We provide analytical arguments for their existence in any bipartite lattice, and give a formula to determine their number. These states should be relevant to quantum transport in discrete systems, and we discuss how to observe them using photonic waveguides, cold atoms in optical lattices, and quantum circuits.

Disorder Induced Regular Dynamics in Oscillating Lattices

We explore the impact of weak disorder on the dynamics of classical particles in a periodically oscillating lattice. It is demonstrated that the disorder induces a hopping process from diffusive to regular motion; i.e., we observe the counterintuitive phenomenon that disorder leads to regular behavior. If the disorder is localized in a finite-sized part of the lattice, the described hopping causes initially diffusive particles to even accumulate in regular structures of the corresponding phase space. A hallmark of this accumulation is the emergence of pronounced peaks in the velocity distribution of particles that should be detectable in state of the art experiments, e.g., with cold atoms in optical lattices.

Competing superfluid orders in spin-orbit-coupled fermionic cold-atom optical lattices

The Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov (FFLO) phase, a superconducting state with non-zero total momentum Cooper pairs in a large magnetic field, was first predicted about 50 years ago, and since then became an important concept in many branches of physics. Despite intensive search in various materials, unambiguous experimental evidence for the FFLO phase is still lacking in experiments. In this paper, we show that both FF (uniform order parameter with plane-wave phase) and LO phase (spatially varying order parameter amplitude) can be observed using fermionic cold atoms in spin-orbit coupled optical lattices. The increasing spin-orbit coupling enhances the FF phase over the LO phase. The coexistence of superfluid and magnetic orders is also found in the normal BCS phase. The pairing mechanism for different phases is understood by visualizing superfluid pairing densities in different spin-orbit bands. The possibility of observing similar physics using spin-orbit coupled superconducting ultra-thin films is also discussed.