English

The effect of light assisted collisions on matter wave coherence in superradiant Bose-Einstein condensates

Quantum Gases 2015-06-03 v1 Quantum Physics

Abstract

We investigate experimentally the effects of light assisted collisions on the coherence between momentum states in Bose-Einstein condensates. The onset of superradiant Rayleigh scattering serves as a sensitive monitor for matter wave coherence. A subtle interplay of binary and collective effects leads to a profound asymmetry between the two sides of the atomic resonance and provides far bigger coherence loss rates for a condensate bathed in blue detuned light than previously estimated. We present a simplified quantitative model containing the essential physics to explain our experimental data and point at a new experimental route to study strongly coupled light matter systems.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.1111.6039,
  title  = {The effect of light assisted collisions on matter wave coherence in superradiant Bose-Einstein condensates},
  author = {N. S. Kampel and A. Griesmaier and M. P. Hornbak Steenstrup and F. Kaminski and E. S. Polzik and J. H. Müller},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1111.6039},
  year   = {2015}
}

Comments

10 pages, 4 figures