Phase separation and pattern formation in a binary Bose-Einstein condensate

The miscibility-immiscibility phase transition in binary Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs) can be controlled by a coupling between the two components. Here we propose a new scheme that uses coupling-induced pattern formation to test the Kibble-Zurek mechanism (KZM) of topological-defect formation in...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:arXiv.org 2012-09
Main Authors: Sabbatini, Jacopo, Zurek, Wojciech H, Davis, Matthew J
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Bose-Einstein condensates
Coupling
Domains
Matter & antimatter
Miscibility
Phase separation
Phase transitions
Scaling laws
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The miscibility-immiscibility phase transition in binary Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs) can be controlled by a coupling between the two components. Here we propose a new scheme that uses coupling-induced pattern formation to test the Kibble-Zurek mechanism (KZM) of topological-defect formation in a quantum phase transition. For a binary BEC in a ring trap we find that the number of domains forming the pattern scales with the coupling quench rate with an exponent as predicted by the KZM. For a binary BEC in an elongated harmonic trap we find a different scaling law due to the transition being spatially inhomogeneous. We perform a "simulation" of the harmonically trapped system in a ring trap to verify the scaling exponent.
ISSN:2331-8422
DOI:10.48550/arxiv.1106.5843