Physics – Condensed Matter – Other Condensed Matter
Scientific paper
2007-12-08
New Journal of Physics 10 (2008) 045006
Physics
Condensed Matter
Other Condensed Matter
23 pages, 7 figures, accepted for publication in New Journal of Physics. v3: Typos and acknowledgment section corrected
Scientific paper
10.1088/1367-2630/10/4/045006
We analyze the results of a recent experiment with bosonic rubidium atoms harmonically confined in a quasi-two-dimensional geometry. In this experiment a well defined critical point was identified, which separates the high-temperature normal state characterized by a single component density distribution, and the low-temperature state characterized by a bimodal density distribution and the emergence of high-contrast interference between independent two-dimensional clouds. We first show that this transition cannot be explained in terms of conventional Bose-Einstein condensation of the trapped ideal Bose gas. Using the local density approximation, we then combine the mean-field (MF) Hartree-Fock theory with the prediction for the Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless transition in an infinite uniform system. If the gas is treated as a strictly 2D system, the MF predictions for the spatial density profiles significantly deviate from those of a recent Quantum Monte-Carlo (QMC) analysis. However when the residual thermal excitation of the strongly confined degree of freedom is taken into account, an excellent agreement is reached between the MF and the QMC approaches. For the interaction strength corresponding to the experiment, we predict a strong correction to the critical atom number with respect to the ideal gas theory (factor $\sim 2$). A quantitative agreement between theory and experiment is reached concerning the critical atom number if the predicted density profiles are used for temperature calibration.
Cheneau Marc
Dalibard Jean
Hadzibabic Zoran
Krüger Peter
Rath Steffen Patrick
No associations
LandOfFree
The trapped two-dimensional Bose gas: from Bose-Einstein condensation to Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless physics does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.
If you have personal experience with The trapped two-dimensional Bose gas: from Bose-Einstein condensation to Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless physics, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and The trapped two-dimensional Bose gas: from Bose-Einstein condensation to Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless physics will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-325038