Project Details
Projekt
T1 Non-equilibrium phase transitions and collective dynamics of driven-dissipative atomic fluids
Applicant
Dr. Iacopo Carusotto
Subject Area
Optics, Quantum Optics and Physics of Atoms, Molecules and Plasmas
Term
since 2024
Project identifier
Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 521530974
In this project we plan to develop a theory of the non-equilibrium steady state and of the many-body dynamics of strongly interacting atomic gases under the combined effect of tailored atom injection and loss processes. The main objective of our theory is twofold: on the one hand, it will serve as a theoretical support and guidance to the experimental efforts of our partner groups towards the driven-dissipative stabilization of strongly correlated and topological states of matter, in particular fractional quantum Hall (FQH) states. On the other hand, it will shine theoretical light on the novel features of the many-body and collective properties of the atomic gas that stem from their driven-dissipative nature. Taking inspiration from our decade-long expertise in the theoretical study of driven-dissipative quantum fluids of light, we will study how an energy- or angular-momentum-selective injection of atoms from an atomic reservoir in either a thermal or a Bose-Einstein condensed state by means of tailored RF, microwave or optical transitions can be combined with suitably designed two- or three-body atomic loss processes to stabilize mesoscopic FQH states in a rotating atomic cloud. We will characterize the non-equilibrium steady-state that results from the dynamical balance of injection and losses, and we will characterize observable quantities that may help getting information on its microscopic nature and, in particular, on its many-body topology. Such observables may range from the response of the atomic cloud to additional external perturbations and trap deformations to the measurement of the correlation properties of quantum fluctuations and thermal noise. A special attention will be devoted to the identification of signatures of the driven-dissipative condition in the dispersion relation of collective excitations, especially of the edge modes of the fractional quantum Hall cloud. Our calculations will make use of the many-body techniques for non-equilibrium systems that the BEC Center has developed over the years in the context of quantum fluids of light. These techniques will be combined with the sophisticated master equation approaches that are going to be developed by our partner theorist groups. Our characterization of the collective response of fractional quantum Hall states will benefit from our partners' expertise in electronic FQH systems and in noisy Luttinger liquids. In return, we will provide them continuous support in the study of the collective dynamics of other non-equilibrium states of matter that are realized by our experimental partners, in particular non-equilibrium condensates and crystallized states.
DFG Programme
Research Units
International Connection
Italy
