Spontaneous creation of Kibble–Zurek solitons in a Bose–Einstein condensate
Year: 2013
Authors: Lamporesi G., Donadello S., Serafini S., Dalfovo F., Ferrari G.
Autors Affiliation: INO-CNR BEC Center and Dipartimento di Fisica, Università di Trento, 38123 Povo, Italy.
Abstract: When a system crosses a second-order phase transition on a finite timescale, spontaneous symmetry breaking can cause the development of domains with independent order parameters, which then grow and approach each other creating boundary defects. This is known as the Kibble–Zurek mechanism. Originally introduced in cosmology, it applies to both classical and quantum phase transitions, in a wide variety of physical systems. Here we report on the spontaneous creation of solitons in Bose–Einstein condensates through the Kibble–Zurek mechanism. We measure the power-law dependence of defect number on the quench time, and show that lower atomic densities enhance defect formation. These results provide a promising test bed for the determination of critical exponents in Bose–Einstein condensates.
Journal/Review: NATURE PHYSICS
Volume: 9 (10) Pages from: 655 to: 659
More Information: We are indebted to L. P. Pitaevskii, I. Carusotto and A. Recati for fruitful discussions. This work is supported by Provincia Autonoma di Trento.KeyWords: Cosmological Experiments; Dark SolitonsDOI: 10.1038/NPHYS2734ImpactFactor: 20.603Citations: 197data from “WEB OF SCIENCE” (of Thomson Reuters) are update at: 2024-12-01References taken from IsiWeb of Knowledge: (subscribers only)Connecting to view paper tab on IsiWeb: Click hereConnecting to view citations from IsiWeb: Click here