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At least 109 records · Page 6

Expansion of a Superfluid Fermi Gas Monolayer

A monolayer of superfluid Fermi gas can be prepared within an optical dipole trap using the tight confinement along the chosen direction. In this case, Cooper pairs occupy the lowest state corresponding to the motion in the trapping potential. After switching off the trapping potential, the initially two-dimensional gas expands to the three-dimensional space. In the case of unitary s-wave interactions, the dynamics of Fermi gas expansion is treated in the framework of appropriately modified Gross–Pitaevskii equation. It is found that the superfluid gas expands significantly faster than the normal gas, in contrast to the situation characteristic of the initially three-dimensional gas. The available experimental data [P. Dyke et al., Phys. Rev. A 93, 011603 (2016)] are close to the predictions of the model under study.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Charge order–superfluidity transition in a two-dimensional system of hard-core bosons and emerging domain structures

We have used high-performance parallel computations by NVIDIA graphics cards applying the method of nonlinear conjugate gradients and Monte Carlo method to observe directly the developing ground state configuration of a two-dimensional hard-core boson system with decrease in temperature, and its evolution with deviation from a half-filling. This has allowed us to explore unconventional features of a charge order—superfluidity phase transition, specifically, formation of an irregular domain structure, emergence of a filamentary superfluid structure that condenses within of the charge-ordered phase domain antiphase boundaries, and formation and evolution of various topological structures.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

What is a particle-conserving Topological Superfluid? The fate of Majorana modes beyond mean-field theory

We investigate Majorana modes of number-conserving fermionic superfluids from both basic physics principles, and concrete models perspectives. After reviewing a criterion for establishing topological superfluidity in interacting systems, based on many-body fermionic parity switches, we reveal the emergence of zero-energy modes anticommuting with fermionic parity. Those many-body Majorana modes are constructed as coherent superpositions of states with different number of fermions. While realization of Majorana modes beyond mean field is plausible, we show that the challenge to quantum-control them is compounded by particle-conservation, and more realistic protocols will have to balance engineering needs with astringent constraints coming from superselection rules. Majorana modes in number-conserving systems are the result of a peculiar interplay between quantum statistics, fermionic parity, and an unusual form of spontaneous symmetry breaking. We test these ideas on the Richardson–Gaudin–Kitaev chain, a number-conserving model solvable by way of the algebraic Bethe ansatz, and equivalent in mean field to a long-range Kitaev chain.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Helium induced fine structure in the electronic spectra of anthracene derivatives doped into superfluid helium nanodroplets

Electronic spectra of organic molecules doped into superfluid helium nanodroplets show characteristic features induced by the helium environment. Besides a solvent induced shift of the electronic transition frequency, in many cases, a spectral fine structure can be resolved for electronic and vibronic transitions which goes beyond the expected feature of a zero phonon line accompanied by a phonon wing as known from matrix isolation spectroscopy. The spectral shape of the zero phonon line and the helium induced phonon wing depends strongly on the dopant species. Phonon wings, for example, are reported ranging from single or multiple sharp transitions to broad (Δν > 100 cm{sup −1}) diffuse signals. Despite the large number of example spectra in the literature, a quantitative understanding of the helium induced fine structure of the zero phonon line and the phonon wing is missing. Our approach is a systematic investigation of related molecular compounds, which may help to shed light on this key feature of microsolvation in superfluid helium droplets. This paper is part of a comparative study of the helium induced fine structure observed in electronic spectra of anthracene derivatives with particular emphasis on a spectrally sharp multiplet splitting at the electronic origin. In addition to previously discussed species, 9-cyanoanthracene and 9-chloroanthracene will be presented in this study for the first time.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Landau superfluids as nonequilibrium stationary states

We define a superfluid state to be a nonequilibrium stationary state (NESS), which, at zero temperature, satisfies certain metastability conditions, which physically express that there should be a sufficiently small energy-momentum transfer between the particles of the fluid and the surroundings (e.g., pipe). It is shown that two models, the Girardeau model and the Huang-Yang-Luttinger (HYL) model, describe superfluids in this sense and, moreover, that, in the case of the HYL model, the metastability condition is directly related to Nozières’ conjecture that, due to the repulsive interaction, the condensate does not suffer fragmentation into two (or more) parts, thereby assuring its quantum coherence. The models are rigorous examples of NESS in which the system is not finite, but rather a many-body system.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Interaction of ions, atoms, and small molecules with quantized vortex lines in superfluid {sup 4}He

The interaction of a number of impurities (H{sub 2}, Ag, Cu, Ag{sub 2}, Cu{sub 2}, Li, He{sub 3}{sup +}, He{sup *} ({sup 3}S), He{sub 2}{sup ∗} ({sup 3}Σ{sub u}), and e{sup −}) with quantized rectilinear vortex lines in superfluid {sup 4}He is calculated by using the Orsay-Trento density functional theory (DFT) method at 0 K. The Donnelly-Parks (DP) potential function binding ions to the vortex is combined with DFT data, yielding the impurity radius as well as the vortex line core parameter. The vortex core parameter at 0 K (0.74 Å) obtained either directly from the vortex line geometry or through the DP potential fitting is smaller than previously suggested but is compatible with the value obtained from re-analysis of the Rayfield-Reif experiment. All of the impurities have significantly higher binding energies to vortex lines below 1 K than the available thermal energy, where the thermally assisted escape process becomes exponentially negligible. Even at higher temperatures 1.5-2.0 K, the trapping times for larger metal clusters are sufficiently long that the previously observed metal nanowire assembly in superfluid helium can take place at vortex lines. The binding energy of the electron bubble is predicted to decrease as a function of both temperature and pressure, which allows adjusting the trap depth for either permanent trapping or to allow thermally assisted escape. Finally, a new scheme for determining the trapping of impurities on vortex lines by optical absorption spectroscopy is outlined and demonstrated for He{sup *}.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Copper dimer interactions on a thermomechanical superfluid {sup 4}He fountain

Laser induced fluorescence imaging and frequency domain excitation spectroscopy of the copper dimer (B{sup 1}Σ{sub g}{sup +}←X{sup 1}Σ{sub u}{sup +}) in thermomechanical helium fountain at 1.7 K are demonstrated. The dimers penetrate into the fountain provided that their average propagation velocity is ca. 15 m/s. This energy threshold is interpreted in terms of an imperfect fountain liquid-gas interface, which acts as a trap for low velocity dimers. Orsay-Trento density functional theory calculations for superfluid {sup 4}He are used to characterize the dynamics of the dimer solvation process into the fountain. The dimers first accelerate towards the fountain surface and once the surface layer is crossed, they penetrate into the liquid and further slow down to Landau critical velocity by creating a vortex ring. Theoretical lineshape calculations support the assignment of the experimentally observed bands to Cu{sub 2} solvated in the bulk liquid. The vibronic progressions are decomposed of a zero-phonon line and two types of phonon bands, which correlate with solvent cavity interface compression (t < 200 fs) and expansion (200 < t < 500 fs) driven by the electronic excitation. The presented experimental method allows to perform molecular spectroscopy in bulk superfluid helium where the temperature and pressure can be varied.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Anisotropic superfluidity of {sup 4}He on a C{sub 36} fullerene molecule

We have performed path-integral Monte Carlo calculations to study the adsorption of {sup 4}He atoms on two different C{sub 36} isomers with the D{sub 6h} and the D{sub 2d} symmetries. The radial {sup 4}He density distributions reveal layer-by-layer growth with the first layer being located at a distance of ∼5.5 Å from the C{sub 36} molecular center and the second layer at ∼8.3 Å. From the angular density profiles of {sup 4}He, we find different quantum states as the number of {sup 4}He adatoms N varies. For N = 20, we observe commensurate solid structures on both D{sub 6h} and D{sub 2d} isomers, where each of 8 hexagon and 12 pentagon centers of the fullerene surfaces is occupied by a single {sup 4}He atom. The second-layer promotion starts beyond N = 38 on both isomers, where a compressible incommensurate structure is observed on the D{sub 6h} isomer and another commensurate structure on D{sub 2d}. Between N = 20 and N = 38, the {sup 4}He monolayer on D{sub 6h} shows several distinct rings of delocalized {sup 4}He atoms along with strongly anisotropic superfluid responses at low temperatures, while isotropic but weak superfluid responses are observed in the {sup 4}He layer on D{sub 2d}.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Communication: Electron diffraction of ferrocene in superfluid helium droplets

We report electron diffraction of ferrocene doped in superfluid helium droplets. By taking advantage of the velocity slip in our pulsed droplet beam using a pulsed electron gun, and by doping with a high concentration of ferrocene delivered via a pulsed valve, we can obtain high quality diffraction images from singly doped droplets. Under the optimal doping conditions, 80% of the droplets sampled in the electron beam are doped with just one ferrocene molecule. Extension of this size selection method to dopant clusters has also been demonstrated. However, incomplete separation of dopant clusters might require deconvolution and modeling of the doping process. This method can be used for studies of nucleation processes in superfluid helium droplets.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Electron diffraction of CBr{sub 4} in superfluid helium droplets: A step towards single molecule diffraction

We demonstrate the practicality of electron diffraction of single molecules inside superfluid helium droplets using CBr{sub 4} as a testing case. By reducing the background from pure undoped droplets via multiple doping, with small corrections for dimers and trimers, clearly resolved diffraction rings of CBr{sub 4} similar to those of gas phase molecules can be observed. The experimental data from CBr{sub 4} doped droplets are in agreement with both theoretical calculations and with experimental results of gaseous species. The abundance of monomers and clusters in the droplet beam also qualitatively agrees with the Poisson statistics. Possible extensions of this approach to macromolecular ions will also be discussed. This result marks the first step in building a molecular goniometer using superfluid helium droplet cooling and field induced orientation. The superior cooling effect of helium droplets is ideal for field induced orientation, but the diffraction background from helium is a concern. This work addresses this background issue and identifies a possible solution. Accumulation of diffraction images only becomes meaningful when all images are produced from molecules oriented in the same direction, and hence a molecular goniometer is a crucial technology for serial diffraction of single molecules.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Fluids, superfluids and supersolids: dynamics and cosmology of self-gravitating media

We compute cosmological perturbations for a generic self-gravitating media described by four derivatively-coupled scalar fields. Depending on the internal symmetries of the action for the scalar fields, one can describe perfect fluids, superfluids, solids and supersolids media. Symmetries dictate both dynamical and thermodynamical properties of the media. Generically, scalar perturbations include, besides the gravitational potential, an additional non-adiabatic mode associated with the entropy per particle σ. While perfect fluids and solids are adiabatic with σ constant in time, superfluids and supersolids feature a non-trivial dynamics for σ. Special classes of isentropic media with zero σ can also be found. Tensor modes become massive for solids and supersolids. Such an effective approach can be used to give a very general and symmetry driven modelling of the dark sector.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Generation of high-winding-number superfluid circulation in Bose-Einstein condensates

We experimentally and numerically demonstrate a method to generate multiply quantized superfluid circulation about an obstacle in highly oblate Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs). We experimentally achieve pinned superflow with winding numbers as high as 11, which persists for at least 4 s. Our method conceptually involves spiraling a blue-detuned laser beam, around and towards the center of the BEC, and is experimentally implemented by moving the BEC in a spiral trajectory around a stationary laser beam. This optical potential serves first as a repulsive stirrer to initiate superflow, and then as a pinning potential to transport the superfluid circulation within the BEC. The spiral technique can be used either to generate a high-winding-number persistent current, or for controlled placement of a cluster of singly quantized vortices of the same circulation. Thus, the technique may serve as a building block in experimental architectures to create on-demand vortex distributions in BECs.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Universal corrections to the superfluid gap in a cold Fermi gas

A framework for computing the superfluid gap in an effective field theory (EFT) of fermions interacting via momentum-independent contact forces is developed. The leading universal corrections in the EFT are one-loop in-medium effects at the Fermi surface, and reproduce the well-known Gor'kov-Melik-Barkhudarov result. Here, the complete subleading universal corrections are presented here, and include one-loop effects away from the Fermi surface, two-loop in-medium effects, as well as modifications to the fermion propagator. Together, these effects are found to reduce the gap at low densities. Applications to neutron superfluidity in neutron stars are also discussed.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Universal collective modes in two-dimensional chiral superfluids

In this work, we utilize semiclassical kinetic equations to investigate the order parameter collective modes of a class of two-dimensional superfluids. Extending the known results for p-wave superfluids, we show that for any chiral ground state of angular momentum L ≥ 1, there exists a subgap mode with a mass √2Δ in the BCS limit, where Δ is the magnitude of the ground-state gap. We determine the most significant Landau parameter that contributes to the mass renormalization and show explicitly that the renormalized modes become massless at the Pomeranchuk instability of the fermion vacuum. Particularly for L = 1, we propose a continuous field theory to include the Fermi liquid effect in a quadrupolar channel and produce the same result under consistent approximations. Furthermore, they provide potential diagnostics for distinguishing two-dimensional chiral ground states of different angular momenta with the order parameter collective modes and reveal another low-energy degree of freedom near the nematic transition.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Dynamic pair-breaking current, critical superfluid velocity, and nonlinear electromagnetic response of nonequilibrium superconductors

Here, we report numerical calculations of a dynamic pair-breaking current density $J_d$ and a critical superfluid velocity $v_d$ in a nonequilibrium superconductor carrying a uniform, large-amplitude AC current density $J(t) = J_a$sinΩ$\textit{t}$ with Ω well below the gap frequency Ω $\ll Δ_0/ℏ$. The dependencies $J_d$(Ω, $\textit{T}$) and $v_d$(Ω, $\textit{T}$) near the critical temperature $T_c$ were calculated from either the full time-dependent nonequilibrium equations for a dirty $\textit{s}$-wave superconductor or the time-dependent Ginzburg-Landau (TDGL) equations for a gapped superconductor, taking into account the GL relaxation time of the order parameter $τ_{\text{GL}}$ and the inelastic electron-phonon relaxation time of quasiparticles $τ_E$. We show that both approaches give similar frequency dependencies of $J_d$(Ω) and $v_d$(Ω) which gradually increase from their static pair-breaking GL values $J_c$ and $v_c$ at Ω$τ_E \ll$1 to $\sqrt{2}J_c$ and $\sqrt{2}v_c$ at Ω$τ_E \gg$ 1. Here $J_d, v_d$ and a dynamic superheating field at which the Meissner state becomes unstable were calculated in two different regimes of a fixed AC current and a fixed AC superfluid velocity induced by the applied AC magnetic field $H = H_a$ sinΩ$\textit{t}$ in a thin superconducting filament or a type-II superconductor with a large GL parameter. We also calculated a nonlinear electromagnetic response of a nonequilibrium superconducting state, particularly a dynamic kinetic inductance and a dissipative quasiparticle conductivity, taking into account the oscillatory dynamics of superconducting condensate and the kinetics of quasiparticles driven by a strong AC current. It is shown that an AC current density produces multiple harmonics of the electric field, the amplitudes of the higher-order harmonics diminishing as $τ_E$ increases.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Spin superfluidity in noncollinear antiferromagnets

We explore the spin superfluid transport in exchange interaction dominated three-sublattice antiferromagnets. The system in the long-wavelength regime is described by an $SO(3)$ invariant field theory. Additional corrections from Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interactions or anisotropies can break the symmetry; however, the system still approximately holds a $U(1)$-rotation symmetry. Thus, the power-law spatial decay signature of spin superfluidity is identified in a nonlocal-measurement setup where the spin injection is described by the generalized spin-mixing conductance. Finally, we suggest iron jarosites as promising material candidates for realizing our proposal.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Effect of radiation-induced defects on the superfluid density and optical conductivity of overdoped La 2 - x Sr x CuO 4

Using a combination of time-domain THz spectroscopy (TDTS) and mutual inductance measurements, we have investigated the low-energy electrodynamic response of overdoped La$_{2-x}$Sr$_x$CuO$_4$ films that have been exposed to ion irradiation. Films went through three rounds of irradiation (2, 4, and 6 $\times 10^{13}$ ions/cm$^2$) and mututal inductance and TDTS experiments were performed between each step. Together with the as-grown film, this gives four different levels of disorder. The transport scattering rate that is measured directly in the THz experiments is an approximately linear function of the radiation dose at all temperatures. This is consistent with a proportionate increase in elastic scattering from point-like 2D disorder. Here, in the superconducting state we find that the relation between T$_c$, the superfluid density, and the scattering rates are quantitatively at odds with the predictions based on the extant theory of Abrikosov-Gorkov-like pair breaking in a dirty d-wave superconductor. Increasing disorder causes only a small change in T$_c$ for the overdoped films, but the changes to the $\omega \sim 0$ superfluid density are much larger.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Direct Lattice Shaking of Bose Condensates: Finite Momentum Superfluids

Here, we address band engineering in the presence of periodic driving by numerically shaking a lattice containing a bosonic condensate. By not restricting to simplified band structure models we are able to address arbitrary values of the shaking frequency, amplitude, and interaction strengths g. For "near-resonant" shaking frequencies with moderate g, a quantum phase transition to a finite momentum superfluid is obtained with Kibble-Zurek scaling and quantitative agreement with experiment. We use this successful calibration as a platform to support a more general investigation of the interplay between (one particle) Floquet theory and the effects associated with arbitrary g. Band crossings lead to superfluid destabilization, but where this occurs depends on g in a complicated fashion.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗