Description
Spinor BECs are Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs) where all the spin states {$m_F=+1,0,-1$} of the atom are accessible [1]. These novel ultracold atomic systems can exhibit both ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic order and thus offer enhanced opportunities for exploring phenomena beyond those accessible in scalar BECs, such as new classes of topological defects [2]. The polar core vortex (PCV) is one such topological defect occurring in the easy-plane phase of ferromagnetic spinor BECs. A PCV exhibits 2π spin circulation, but with zero mass circulation where the vortex core is populated by unmagnetized atoms in the $m_F=0$ state. The first experimental observation of a PCV was achieved by Sadler et al [2] in 2006, where the vortex spontaneously formed during a magnetic field quench. Due to the non-deterministic nature of creating PCVs, further experimental study of their properties and dynamics has been limited. Controlled creation of PCVs can enable such studies, including few-body PCV dynamics, PCV turbulence, and the equilibrium dynamics of PCV systems. In this work, we describe our efforts to realize on-demand PCV creation in quasi-2D $Rb^87$ spinor BECs with uniform density enabled by digital-micromirror devices (DMD) optical traps [3].
[1] D. M. Stamper-Kurn, M. R. Andrews, A. P. Chikkatur, S. Inouye, H.-J. Miesner, J. Stenger, W. Ketterle, Optical Confinement of a Bose-Einstein Condensate, Phys. Rev. Lett. 80 (1998) 2027–2030.
[2] L. E. Sadler, J. M. Higbie, S. R. Leslie, M. Vengalattore, D. M. Stamper-Kurn, Spontaneous symmetry breaking in a quenched ferromagnetic spinor Bose-Einstein condensate, Nature 443 (2006) 312.
[3] Gauthier, G.; Lenton, I.; Parry, N.M.; Baker, M.; Davis, M.J.; Rubinsztein-Dunlop, H.; Neely, T.W. Direct imaging of a digital-micromirror device for configurable microscopic optical potentials. Optica 2016, 3, 1136–1143. doi:10.1364/OPTICA.3.001136.
| Presenter name | Zachary Kerr |
|---|---|
| How will you attend ICAP-27? | I am planning on in-person attendance |
