Publications

Order by: publication date number of citations

• Number-resolved imaging of $^{88}$Sr atoms in a long working distance optical tweezer

  Niamh Christina Jackson, Ryan Keith Hanley, Matthew Hill, Frédéric Leroux, Charles S. Adams, Matthew Philip Austin Jones

  SciPost Phys. 8, 038 (2020) · published 10 March 2020 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We demonstrate number-resolved detection of individual strontium atoms in a long working distance low numerical aperture (NA = 0.26) tweezer. Using a camera based on single-photon counting technology, we determine the presence of an atom in the tweezer with a fidelity of 0.989(6) (and loss of 0.13(5)) within a 200 $\mu$s imaging time. Adding continuous narrow-line Sisyphus cooling yields similar fidelity, at the expense of much longer imaging times (30 ms). Under these conditions we determine whether the tweezer contains zero, one or two atoms, with a fidelity $>$0.8 in all cases with the high readout speed of the camera enabling real-time monitoring of the number of trapped atoms. Lastly we show that the fidelity can be further improved by using a pulsed cooling/imaging scheme that reduces the effect of camera dark noise.

  10 citations

• QuSpin: a Python package for dynamics and exact diagonalisation of quantum many body systems. Part II: bosons, fermions and higher spins

  Phillip Weinberg, Marin Bukov

  SciPost Phys. 7, 020 (2019) · published 9 August 2019 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We present a major update to QuSpin, SciPostPhys.2.1.003 -- an open-source Python package for exact diagonalization and quantum dynamics of arbitrary boson, fermion and spin many-body systems, supporting the use of various (user-defined) symmetries in one and higher dimension and (imaginary) time evolution following a user-specified driving protocol. We explain how to use the new features of QuSpin using seven detailed examples of various complexity: (i) the transverse-field Ising chain and the Jordan-Wigner transformation, (ii) free particle systems: the Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) model, (iii) the many-body localized 1D Fermi-Hubbard model, (iv) the Bose-Hubbard model in a ladder geometry, (v) nonlinear (imaginary) time evolution and the Gross-Pitaevskii equation on a 1D lattice, (vi) integrability breaking and thermalizing dynamics in the translationally-invariant 2D transverse-field Ising model, and (vii) out-of-equilibrium Bose-Fermi mixtures. This easily accessible and user-friendly package can serve various purposes, including educational and cutting-edge experimental and theoretical research. The complete package documentation is available under http://weinbe58.github.io/QuSpin/index.html.

  178 citations

• Thermal counting statistics in an atomic two-mode squeezed vacuum state

  Maxime Perrier, Ziyad Amodjee, Pierre Dussarrat, Alexandre Dareau, Alain Aspect, Marc Cheneau, Denis Boiron, Christoph I. Westbrook

  SciPost Phys. 7, 002 (2019) · published 3 July 2019 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We measure the population distribution in one of the atomic twin beams generated by four-wave mixing in an optical lattice. Although the produced two-mode squeezed vacuum state is pure, each individual mode is described as a statistical mixture. We confirm the prediction that the particle number follows an exponential distribution when only one spatio-temporal mode is selected. We also show that this distribution accounts well for the contrast of an atomic Hong--Ou--Mandel experiment. These experiments constitute an important validation of our twin beam source in view of a future test of a Bell inequality.

  6 citations

• The impact of non-ideal surfaces on the solid-water interaction: a time-resolved adsorption study

  Matthias M. May, Helena Stange, Jonas Weinrich, Thomas Hannappel, Oliver Supplie

  SciPost Phys. 6, 058 (2019) · published 13 May 2019 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  The initial interaction of water with semiconductors determines the electronic structure of the solid-liquid interface. The exact nature of this interaction is, however, often unknown. Here, we study gallium phosphide-based surfaces exposed to H2O by means of in situ reflection anisotropy spectroscopy. We show that the introduction of typical imperfections in the form of surface steps or trace contaminants not only changes the dynamics of the interaction, but also its qualitative nature. This emphasises the challenges for the comparability of experiments with (idealised) electronic structure models for electrochemistry.

  4 citations

• Compact bulk-machined electromagnets for quantum gas experiments

  Kevin Roux, Barbara Cilenti, Victor Helson, Hideki Konishi, Jean-Philippe Brantut

  SciPost Phys. 6, 048 (2019) · published 24 April 2019 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We present an electromagnet combining a large number of windings in a constrained volume with efficient cooling. It is based on bulk copper where a small pitch spiral is cut out and impregnated with epoxy, forming an ensemble which is then machined at will to maximize the use of the available volume. Water cooling is achieved in parallel by direct contact between coolant and the copper windings. A pair of such coils produces magnetic fields suitable for exploiting the broad Feshbach resonance of $^6$Li at 832.2 G. It offers a compact and cost-effective solution for quantum gas experiments.

  6 citations

• Sub-Doppler laser cooling of $^{39}$K via the 4S$\to$5P transition

  Govind Unnikrishnan, Michael Gröbner, Hanns-Christoph Nägerl

  SciPost Phys. 6, 047 (2019) · published 18 April 2019 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We demonstrate sub-Doppler laser cooling of $ ^{39} $K using degenerate Raman sideband cooling via the 4S$_{1/2} \rightarrow $5P$ _{1/2} $ transition at 404.8 nm. By using an optical lattice in combination with a magnetic field and optical pumping beams, we obtain a spin-polarized sample of up to $5.6 \times 10^{7}$ atoms cooled down to a sub-Doppler temperature of 4 $\mu $K, reaching a peak density of $3.9 \times 10^{9}$ atoms/cm$ ^{3} $, a phase-space density greater than $ 10^{-5} $, and an average vibrational level of $ \langle \nu \rangle=0.6 $ in the lattice. This work opens up the possibility of implementing a single-site imaging scheme in a far-detuned optical lattice utilizing shorter wavelength transitions in alkali atoms, thus allowing improved spatial resolution.

  4 citations

• Optical control of competing exchange interactions and coherent spin-charge coupling in two-orbital Mott insulators

  Marion M. S. Barbeau, Martin Eckstein, Mikhail I. Katsnelson, Johan H. Mentink

  SciPost Phys. 6, 027 (2019) · published 5 March 2019 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  In order to have a better understanding of ultrafast electrical control of exchange interactions in multi-orbital systems, we study a two-orbital Hubbard model at half filling under the action of a time-periodic electric field. Using suitable projection operators and a generalized time-dependent canonical transformation, we derive an effective Hamiltonian which describes two different regimes. First, for a wide range of non-resonant frequencies, we find a change of the bilinear Heisenberg exchange $J_{\textrm{ex}}$ that is analogous to the single-orbital case. Moreover we demonstrate that also the additional biquadratic exchange interaction $B_{\textrm{ex}}$ can be enhanced, reduced and even change sign depending on the electric field. Second, for special driving frequencies, we demonstrate a novel spin-charge coupling phenomenon enabling coherent transfer between spin and charge degrees of freedom of doubly ionized states. These results are confirmed by an exact time-evolution of the full two-orbital Mott-Hubbard Hamiltonian.

  12 citations

• Lasing in optically induced gap states in photonic graphene

  Marijana Milićević, Olivier Bleu, Dmitry D. Solnyshkov, Isabelle Sagnes, Aristide Lemaître, Luc Le Gratiet, Abdelmounaim Harouri, Jacqueline Bloch, Guillaume Malpuech, Alberto Amo

  SciPost Phys. 5, 064 (2018) · published 19 December 2018 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We report polariton lasing in localised gap states in a honeycomb lattice of coupled micropillars. Localisation of the modes is induced by the optical potential created by the excitation beam, requiring no additional engineering of the otherwise homogeneous polariton lattice. The spatial shape of the gap states arises from the interplay of the orbital angular momentum eigenmodes of the cylindrical potential created by the excitation beam and the hexagonal symmetry of the underlying lattice. Our results provide insights into the engineering of defect states in two-dimensional lattices.

  7 citations

• Mott-insulator-aided detection of ultra-narrow Feshbach resonances

  Manfred J. Mark, Florian Meinert, Katharina Lauber, Hanns-Christoph Nägerl

  SciPost Phys. 5, 055 (2018) · published 29 November 2018 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We report on the detection of extremely narrow Feshbach resonances by employing a Mott-insulating state for cesium atoms in a three-dimensional optical lattice. The Mott insulator protects the atomic ensemble from high background three-body losses in a magnetic field region where a broad Efimov resonance otherwise dominates the atom loss in bulk samples. Our technique reveals three ultra-narrow and previously unobserved Feshbach resonances in this region with widths below $\approx 10\,\mu$G, measured via Landau-Zener-type molecule formation and confirmed by theoretical predictions. For comparatively broader resonances we find a lattice-induced substructure in the respective atom-loss feature due to the interplay of tunneling and strong particle interactions. Our results provide a powerful tool to identify and characterize narrow scattering resonances, particularly in systems with complex Feshbach spectra. The observed ultra-narrow Feshbach resonances could be interesting candidates for precision measurements.

  11 citations

• Solution of Baxter equation for the $q$-Toda and Toda$_2$ chains by NLIE

  Olivier Babelon, Karol K. Kozlowski, Vincent Pasquier

  SciPost Phys. 5, 035 (2018) · published 18 October 2018 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We construct a basis of solutions of the scalar $\boldsymbol{ \texttt{t} }- \boldsymbol{ \texttt{Q} }$ equation describing the spectrum of the $q$-Toda and Toda$_2$ chains by using auxiliary non-linear integral equations. Our construction allows us to provide quantisation conditions for the spectra of these models in the form of thermodynamic Bethe Ansatz-like equations.

  3 citations