Quantum engineering of Majorana quasiparticles in one-dimensional optical lattices

We propose a feasible way of engineering Majorana-type quasiparticles in ultracold fermionic gases on a one-dimensional (1D) optical lattice. For this purpose, imbalanced ultracold atoms interacting by the spin-orbit coupling should be hybridized with a three-dimensional Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) molecular cloud. By constraining the profile of an internal defect potential we show that the Majorana-type excitations can be created or annihilated. This process is modelled within the Bogoliubov-de Gennes approach. This study is relevant also to nanoscopic 1D superconductors where modification of the internal defect potential can be obtained by electrostatic means.