Density-dependent synthetic gauge fields using periodically modulated interactions

Density Dependent Gauge Field Inducing Emergent Su-Schrieffer-Heeger Physics, Solitons, and Condensates in a Discrete Nonlinear Schrödinger Equation

We investigate a discrete nonlinear Schrödinger equation with dynamical, density-difference-dependent gauge fields. We find a ground-state transition from a plane wave condensate to a localized soliton state as the gauge coupling is varied. Interestingly we find a regime in which the condensate and soliton are both stable. We identify an emergent chiral symmetry, which leads to the existence of a symmetry-protected zero-energy edge mode. The emergent chiral symmetry relates low and high energy solitons. These states indicate that the interaction acts both repulsively and attractively.

Formation, propagation, and excitation of matter solitons and rogue waves in chiral BECs with a current nonlinearity trapped in external potentials

In this paper, we investigate formation and propagation of matter solitons and rogue waves (RWs) in chiral Bose-Einstein condensates modulated by different external potentials, modeled by the chiral Gross-Pitaevskii (GP) equation with the current nonlinearity and external potentials. On the one hand, the introduction of two potentials (Pöschl-Teller and harmonic-Gaussian potentials) enables the discovery of exact soliton solutions in both focusing and defocusing cases. We analyze the interplay effects of current nonlinearity and potential on soliton stability via associated Bogoliubov-de Gennes equations. Moreover, multiple families of numerical solitons (ground-state and dipole modes) trapped in potentials are found, exhibiting distinctive structures. The interactions between solitons trapped in potentials are studied, which exhibit the inelastic trajectories and repulsive interactions. On the other hand, we introduce the time-dependent potentials such that the controlled RWs are found in both focusing and defocusing GP equations with current nonlinearity. Furthermore, through the interaction between potentials and current nonlinearity, it is possible to enlarge the region of modulational instability, leading to the generation of RWs and chiral solitons. High-order RWs are generated from several Gaussian perturbations on a continuous wave. The presence of current nonlinearity disrupts the structures of these high-order RWs, causing them to undergo a transform into chiral lower-amplitude solitons. Finally, various types of soliton excitations are investigated by varying the strengths of potential and current nonlinearity, showing the abundant dynamic transforms of chrital matter solitons.

Compacton existence and spin-orbit density dependence in Bose-Einstein condensates

We demonstrate the existence of compactons matter waves in binary mixtures of Bose-Einstein condensates (BEC) trapped in deep optical lattices (OL) subjected to equal contributions of intraspecies Rashba and Dresselhaus spin-orbit coupling (SOC) under periodic time modulations of the intraspecies scattering length. We show that these modulations lead to a rescaling of the SOC parameters that involves the density imbalance of the two components. This gives rise to density dependent SOC parameters that strongly influence the existence and the stability of compacton matter waves. The stability of SOC-compactons is investigated both by linear stability analysis and by time integrations of the coupled Gross-Pitaevskii equations. We find that SOC restricts the parameter ranges for stable stationary SOC-compacton existence but, on the other side, it gives a more stringent signature of their occurrence. In particular, SOC-compactons should appear when the intraspecies interactions and the number of atoms in the two components are perfectly balanced (or close to being balanced for the metastable case). The possibility to use SOC-compactons as a tool for indirect measurements of the number of atoms and/or the intraspecies interactions is also suggested.

Interaction-Induced Non-Hermitian Topological Phases from a Dynamical Gauge Field

We present a minimal non-Hermitian model where a topologically nontrivial complex energy spectrum is induced by interparticle interactions. Our model consists of a one-dimensional chain with a dynamical non-Hermitian gauge field with density dependence. The model is topologically trivial for a single-particle system, but exhibits nontrivial non-Hermitian topology with a point gap when two or more particles are present in the system. We construct an effective doublon model to describe the nontrivial topology in the presence of two particles, which quantitatively agrees with the full interacting model. Our model can be realized by modulating hoppings of the Hatano-Nelson model; we provide a concrete Floquet protocol to realize the model in atomic and optical settings.

Open Quantum System Simulation of Faraday's Induction Law via Dynamical Instabilities

We propose a novel type of a Bose-Hubbard ladder model based on an open quantum-gas-cavity-QED setup to study the physics of dynamical gauge potentials. Atomic tunneling along opposite directions in the two legs of the ladder is mediated by photon scattering from transverse pump lasers to two distinct cavity modes. The resulting interplay between cavity photon dissipation and the optomechanical atomic backaction then induces an average-density-dependent dynamical gauge field. The dissipation-stabilized steady-state atomic motion along the legs of the ladder leads either to a pure chiral current, screening the induced dynamical magnetic field as in the Meissner effect, or generates simultaneously chiral and particle currents. For a sufficiently strong pump the system enters into a dynamically unstable regime exhibiting limit-cycle and period-doubled oscillations. Intriguingly, an electromotive force is induced in this dynamical regime as expected from an interpretation based on Faraday's law of induction for the time-dependent synthetic magnetic flux.

Cold atoms meet lattice gauge theory

The central idea of this review is to consider quantum field theory models relevant for particle physics and replace the fermionic matter in these models by a bosonic one. This is mostly motivated by the fact that bosons are more 'accessible' and easier to manipulate for experimentalists, but this 'substitution' also leads to new physics and novel phenomena. It allows us to gain new information about among other things confinement and the dynamics of the deconfinement transition. We will thus consider bosons in dynamical lattices corresponding to the bosonic Schwinger or [Formula: see text] Bose-Hubbard models. Another central idea of this review concerns atomic simulators of paradigmatic models of particle physics theory such as the Creutz-Hubbard ladder, or Gross-Neveu-Wilson and Wilson-Hubbard models. This article is not a general review of the rapidly growing field-it reviews activities related to quantum simulations for lattice field theories performed by the Quantum Optics Theory group at ICFO and their collaborators from 19 institutions all over the world. Finally, we will briefly describe our efforts to design experimentally friendly simulators of these and other models relevant for particle physics. This article is part of the theme issue 'Quantum technologies in particle physics'.

Interaction Control and Bright Solitons in Coherently Coupled Bose-Einstein Condensates

We demonstrate fast control of the interatomic interactions in a Bose-Einstein condensate by coherently coupling two atomic states with intra- and interstate scattering lengths of opposite signs. We measure the elastic and inelastic scattering properties of the system and find good agreement with a theoretical model describing the interactions between dressed states. In the attractive regime, we observe the formation of bright solitons formed by dressed-state atoms. Finally, we study the response of the system to an interaction quench from repulsive to attractive values, and observe how the resulting modulational instability develops into a bright soliton train.

Bosonic Continuum Theory of One-Dimensional Lattice Anyons

Anyons with arbitrary exchange phases exist on 1D lattices in ultracold gases. Yet, known continuum theories in 1D do not match. We derive the continuum limit of 1D lattice anyons via interacting bosons. The theory maintains the exchange phase periodicity fully analogous to 2D anyons. This provides a mapping between experiments, lattice anyons, and continuum theories, including Kundu anyons with a natural regularization as a special case. We numerically estimate the Luttinger parameter as a function of the exchange angle to characterize long-range signatures of the theory and predict different velocities for left- and right-moving collective excitations.

Modulational instability and soliton generation in chiral Bose-Einstein condensates with zero-energy nonlinearity

By means of analytical and numerical methods, we address the modulational instability (MI) in chiral condensates governed by the Gross-Pitaevskii equation including the current nonlinearity. The analysis shows that this nonlinearity partly suppresses the MI driven by the cubic self-focusing, although the current nonlinearity is not represented in the system's energy (although it modifies the momentum), hence it may be considered as zero-energy nonlinearity. Direct simulations demonstrate generation of trains of stochastically interacting chiral solitons by MI. In the ring-shaped setup, the MI creates a single traveling solitary wave. The sign of the current nonlinearity determines the direction of propagation of the emerging solitons.

Quantum Simulation Meets Nonequilibrium Dynamical Mean-Field Theory: Exploring the Periodically Driven, Strongly Correlated Fermi-Hubbard Model

We perform an ab initio comparison between nonequilibrium dynamical mean-field theory and optical lattice experiments by studying the time evolution of double occupations in the periodically driven Fermi-Hubbard model. For off-resonant driving, the range of validity of a description in terms of an effective static Hamiltonian is determined and its breakdown due to energy absorption close to resonance is demonstrated. For near-resonant driving, we investigate the response to a change in driving amplitude and discover an asymmetric excitation spectrum with respect to the detuning. In general, we find good agreement between experiment and theory, which cross validates the experimental and numerical approaches in a strongly correlated nonequilibrium system.

Coupling ultracold matter to dynamical gauge fields in optical lattices: From flux attachment to ℤ2 lattice gauge theories

From the standard model of particle physics to strongly correlated electrons, various physical settings are formulated in terms of matter coupled to gauge fields. Quantum simulations based on ultracold atoms in optical lattices provide a promising avenue to study these complex systems and unravel the underlying many-body physics. Here, we demonstrate how quantized dynamical gauge fields can be created in mixtures of ultracold atoms in optical lattices, using a combination of coherent lattice modulation with strong interactions. Specifically, we propose implementation of ℤ2 lattice gauge theories coupled to matter, reminiscent of theories previously introduced in high-temperature superconductivity. We discuss a range of settings from zero-dimensional toy models to ladders featuring transitions in the gauge sector to extended two-dimensional systems. Mastering lattice gauge theories in optical lattices constitutes a new route toward the realization of strongly correlated systems, with properties dictated by an interplay of dynamical matter and gauge fields.

Floquet Mechanism for Non-Abelian Fractional Quantum Hall States

Three-body correlations, which arise between spin-polarized electrons in the first excited Landau level, are believed to play a key role in the emergence of enigmatic non-Abelian fractional quantum Hall (FQH) effects. Inspired by recent advances in Floquet engineering, we investigate periodic driving of anisotropic two-body interactions as a route for controllably creating and tuning effective three-body interactions in the FQH regime. We develop an analytic formalism to describe this Floquet-FQH protocol, which is distinct from previous approaches that instead focus on band structure engineering via modulation of single-particle hopping terms. By systematically analyzing the resulting interactions using generalized pseudopotentials, we show that our Floquet-FQH approach leads to repulsive as well as attractive three-body interactions that are highly tunable and support a variety of non-Abelian multicomponent FQH states. Finally, we propose an implementation of the protocol in optically dressed ultracold polar molecules with modulated Rabi frequencies.

Floquet Dynamics in Driven Fermi-Hubbard Systems

We study the dynamics and timescales of a periodically driven Fermi-Hubbard model in a three-dimensional hexagonal lattice. The evolution of the Floquet many-body state is analyzed by comparing it to an equivalent implementation in undriven systems. The dynamics of double occupancies for the near- and off-resonant driving regime indicate that the effective Hamiltonian picture is valid for several orders of magnitude in modulation time. Furthermore, we show that driving a hexagonal lattice compared to a simple cubic lattice allows us to modulate the system up to 1 s, corresponding to hundreds of tunneling times, with only minor atom loss. Here, driving at a frequency close to the interaction energy does not introduce resonant features to the atom loss.

Observation of Density-Dependent Gauge Fields in a Bose-Einstein Condensate Based on Micromotion Control in a Shaken Two-Dimensional Lattice

We demonstrate a density-dependent gauge field, induced by atomic interactions, for quantum gases. The gauge field results from the synchronous coupling between the interactions and micromotion of the atoms in a modulated two-dimensional optical lattice. As a first step, we show that a coherent shaking of the lattice in two directions can couple the momentum and interactions of atoms and break the fourfold symmetry of the lattice. We then create a full interaction-induced gauge field by modulating the interaction strength in synchrony with the lattice shaking. When a condensate is loaded into this shaken lattice, the gauge field acts to preferentially prepare the system in different quasimomentum ground states depending on the modulation phase. We envision that these interaction-induced fields, created by fine control of micromotion, will provide a stepping stone to model new quantum phenomena within and beyond condensed matter physics.

Resonances in a periodically driven bosonic system

Periodically driven systems are a common topic in modern physics. In optical lattices specifically, driving is at the origin of many interesting phenomena. However, energy is not conserved in driven systems, and under periodic driving, heating of a system is a real concern. In an effort to better understand this phenomenon, the heating of single-band systems has been studied, with a focus on disorder- and interaction-induced effects, such as many-body localization. Nevertheless, driven systems occur in a much wider context than this, leaving room for further research. Here, we fill this gap by studying a noninteracting model, characterized by discrete, periodically spaced energy levels that are unbounded from above. We couple these energy levels resonantly through a periodic drive, and discuss the heating dynamics of this system as a function of the driving protocol. In this way, we show that a combination of stimulated emission and absorption causes the presence of resonant stable states. This will serve to elucidate the conditions under which resonant driving causes heating in quantum systems.

Unconventional superconductivity in generalized Hubbard model: role of electron-hole symmetry breaking terms

We investigate the effect of the electron-hole (e-h) symmetry breaking on d-wave superconductivity induced by non-local effects of correlations in the generalized Hubbard model. The symmetry breaking is introduced in a two-fold manner: by the next-to-nearest neighbor hopping of electrons and by the charge-bond interaction-the off-diagonal term of the Coulomb potential. Both terms lead to a pronounced asymmetry of the superconducting order parameter. The next-to-nearest neighbor hopping enhances superconductivity for h-doping, while diminishes it for e-doping. The charge-bond interaction alone leads to the opposite effect and, additionally, to the kinetic-energy gain upon condensation in the underdoped regime. With both terms included, with similar amplitudes, the height of the superconducting dome and the critical doping remain in favor of h-doping. The influence of the charge-bond interaction on deviations from [Formula: see text] symmetry of the shape of the gap at the Fermi surface in the momentum space is briefly discussed.

Floquet Engineering of Correlated Tunneling in the Bose-Hubbard Model with Ultracold Atoms

We report on the experimental implementation of tunable occupation-dependent tunneling in a Bose-Hubbard system of ultracold atoms via time-periodic modulation of the on-site interaction energy. The tunneling rate is inferred from a time-resolved measurement of the lattice site occupation after a quantum quench. We demonstrate coherent control of the tunneling dynamics in the correlated many-body system, including full suppression of tunneling as predicted within the framework of Floquet theory. We find that the tunneling rate explicitly depends on the atom number difference in neighboring lattice sites. Our results may open up ways to realize artificial gauge fields that feature density dependence with ultracold atoms.

Quantum Dynamics with Spatiotemporal Control of Interactions in a Stable Bose-Einstein Condensate

Optical control of atomic interactions in quantum gases is a long-sought goal of cold atom research. Previous experiments have been hindered by rapid decay of the quantum gas and parasitic deformation of the trap potential. We develop and implement a generic scheme for optical control of Feshbach resonances which yields long quantum gas lifetimes and a negligible parasitic dipole force. We show that fast and local control of interactions leads to intriguing quantum dynamics in new regimes, highlighted by the formation of van der Waals molecules and localized collapse of a Bose condensate.

Effective Hamiltonians for Rapidly Driven Many-Body Lattice Systems: Induced Exchange Interactions and Density-Dependent Hoppings

We consider 1D lattices described by Hubbard or Bose-Hubbard models, in the presence of periodic high-frequency perturbations, such as uniform ac force or modulation of hopping coefficients. Effective Hamiltonians for interacting particles are derived using an averaging method resembling classical canonical perturbation theory. As is known, a high-frequency force may renormalize hopping coefficients, causing interesting phenomena such as coherent destruction of tunneling and creation of artificial gauge fields. We find explicitly additional corrections to the effective Hamiltonians due to interactions, corresponding to nontrivial processes such as single-particle density-dependent tunneling, correlated pair hoppings, nearest neighbor interactions, etc. Some of these processes arise also in multiband lattice models, and are capable of giving rise to a rich variety of quantum phases. The apparent contradiction with other methods, e.g., Floquet-Magnus expansion, is explained. The results may be useful for designing effective Hamiltonian models in experiments with ultracold atoms, as well as in the field of ultrafast nonequilibrium magnetism. An example of manipulating exchange interaction in a Mott-Hubbard insulator is considered, where our corrections play an essential role.

Anyon Hubbard Model in One-Dimensional Optical Lattices

Raman-assisted hopping may be used to realize the anyon Hubbard model in one-dimensional optical lattices. We propose a feasible scenario that significantly improves the proposal of T. Keilmann et al. [Nat. Commun. 2, 361 (2011)], allowing as well for an exact realization of the two-body hard-core constraint, and for controllable effective interactions without the need of Feshbach resonances. We show that the combination of anyonic statistics and two-body hard-core constraint leads to a rich ground-state physics, including Mott insulators with attractive interactions, pair superfluids, dimer phases, and multicritical points. Moreover, the anyonic statistics results in a novel two-component superfluid of holon and doublon dimers, characterized by a large but finite compressibility and a multipeaked momentum distribution, which may be easily revealed experimentally.