English

Fractional-Period Excitations in Continuum Periodic Systems

Other Condensed Matter 2009-11-11 v4 Pattern Formation and Solitons Atomic Physics

Abstract

We investigate the generation of fractional-period states in continuum periodic systems. As an example, we consider a Bose-Einstein condensate confined in an optical-lattice potential. We show that when the potential is turned on non-adiabatically, the system explores a number of transient states whose periodicity is a fraction of that of the lattice. We illustrate the origin of fractional-period states analytically by treating them as resonant states of a parametrically forced Duffing oscillator and discuss their transient nature and potential observability.

Cite

@article{arxiv.cond-mat/0510711,
  title  = {Fractional-Period Excitations in Continuum Periodic Systems},
  author = {H. E. Nistazakis and Mason A. Porter and P. G. Kevrekidis and D. J. Frantzeskakis and A. Nicolin and J. K. Chin},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:cond-mat/0510711},
  year   = {2009}
}

Comments

10 pages, 6 figures (some with multiple parts); revised version: minor clarifications of a couple points, to appear in Physical Review A