Multicomponent gap solitons in spinor Bose-Einstein condensates

Journal Article · Thu Feb 15 04:00:00 EST 2007 · Physical Review. A

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PHYSREVA.75.023617· OSTI ID:20982168

DaPbrowska-Wuester, Beata J; Ostrovskaya, Elena A; Alexander, Tristram J; Kivshar, Yuri S ^[1]

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1. ARC Centre of Excellence for Quantum-Atom Optics and Nonlinear Physics Centre, Research School of Physical Sciences and Engineering, The Australian National University, Canberra ACT 0200 (Australia)

We model the nonlinear behavior of spin-1 Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs) with repulsive spin-independent interactions and either ferromagnetic or antiferromagnetic (polar) spin-dependent interactions, loaded into a one-dimensional optical lattice potential. We show that both types of BECs exhibit dynamical instabilities and may form spatially localized multicomponent structures. The localized states of the spinor matter waves take the form of vector gap solitons and self-trapped waves that exist only within gaps of the linear Bloch-wave band-gap spectrum. Of special interest are the nonlinear localized states that do not exhibit a common spatial density profile shared by all condensate components, and consequently cannot be described by the single mode approximation (SMA) frequently employed within the framework of the mean-field treatment. We show that the non-SMA states can exhibits Josephson-like internal oscillations and self-magnetization, i.e., intrinsic precession of the local spin. Finally, we demonstrate that nonstationary states of a spinor BEC in a lattice exhibit coherent undamped spin-mixing dynamics, and that their controlled conversion into a stationary state can be achieved by the application of an external magnetic field.

• OSTI ID: 20982168
• Journal Information: Physical Review. A, Journal Name: Physical Review. A Journal Issue: 2 Vol. 75; ISSN 1050-2947; ISSN PLRAAN
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS
SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY
ANTIFERROMAGNETISM
APPROXIMATIONS
BOSE-EINSTEIN CONDENSATION
CONDENSATES
DENSITY
INSTABILITY
INTERACTIONS
JOSEPHSON EFFECT
MAGNETIC FIELDS
MAGNETIZATION
MEAN-FIELD THEORY
MIXING
NONLINEAR PROBLEMS
ONE-DIMENSIONAL CALCULATIONS
OPTICAL MODELS
OSCILLATIONS
POTENTIALS
SOLITONS
SPIN
TRAPPING