Center for Ultracold Atoms and Quantum Gases, IExP and IQOQI, Innsbruck
Category for scientific news related to the theory group.
Read our latest preprint published on arxiv!
In this work, Silvia Trabucco, Elena Poli, Massimo Mannarelli, and Francesca Ferlaino show that the seemingly dual rotational response of a supersolid arises from a single flow-counterflow mechanism, providing a microscopic interpretation of the phenomenological rigid/superfluid partitioning.
These results provide a microscopic understanding of how superfluidity and crystalline order coexist in rotating supersolids.
Our paper “Synchronization in rotating supersolids” is now published in Nature Physics here!
Read the news article by Nature Physics here and the news article by the University of Innsbruck here.
Synchronization is a widespread phenomenon in natural and engineered systems, governing the emergence of collective dynamics in different domains including biology and classical and quantum physics. Supersolids—quantum phases that combine crystalline order and superfluidity—offer a platform to explore synchronization in systems with coexisting broken symmetries.
In this work, we investigate the dynamics of a dipolar supersolid subjected to external rotation. We show that, above a critical driving frequency, the crystal revolution undergoes a sudden synchronization with the rotating field seeded by the nucleation of quantized vortices, hallmark of superfluidity.
This transition reflects the interplay between the solid-like and superfluid responses of the system. By comparing simulations of the extended Gross–Pitaevskii equation with experimental observations, we demonstrate that synchronization can serve as a dynamical indicator for vortex nucleation. This approach provides a complementary method to determine the critical rotation frequency for vortex formation in supersolids.
We have published a new paper by our theory + erbium team on arxiv!
In this work, we leverage the special properties of ultracold magnetic lanthanide atoms trapped in optical lattices, to create a highly controllable version of the iconic t-J model, a cornerstone of quantum many-body physics. We uncover a wide range of exotic phases, including superconducting, topological, and—most strikingly—topological superconducting states. The latter presents several aspects of novelty. The most intriguing one is that differently from the paradigmatic example of one-dimensional topological superconductivity appearing in the celebrated Kitaev chain, this phase is purely induced by competing interactions. We also outline how these phases can be realized and detected with current experimental tools, opening a powerful new route for a deeper understanding of strongly interacting fermionic quantum matter.
Read our latest paper published on arxiv!
We present a quantitative investigation of one- and two-body light-mediated processes that occur to few erbium atoms in an optical tweezer, when exposed to near-resonant light. Using our ultrafast imaging technique with blue light, we are able to track the in-tweezer population dynamics during light-assisted collision and cooling processes.
To gain deeper insights into the underlying physics, we develop and implement a Monte Carlo algorithm that simulates the coupled dynamics of the atoms’ internal and external degrees of freedom. After validating our theoretical model against experimental data, we use its predictive capabilities to guide our experimental design. In particular, we examine how different erbium transitions influence light-assisted collisions, with a focus on optimizing their efficiency and reliability for preparing single atoms.
In collaboration between the Er-Dy Lab and the Theory subgroup, and Dr. Giacomo Lamporesi at the BEC centre in Trento, our new pre-print reveals a fundamental difference in a supersolid’s response to rotation in absence or presence of a quantum vortex. This work builds on our previous investigation of vortices in supersolids, showing that the superfluid and solid natures synchronize to the external rotation only when there are vortices in the state. We verify this theoretical prediction in the experiment, revealing the route to vortex nucleation in supersolids.
See the pre-print here: https://arxiv.org/abs/2412.11976
Now published in Nature!
In an internal collaboration between the Er-Dy Lab and the Theory subgroup, our new pre-print reveals a fundamental difference in vortex nucleation between the unmodulated superfluid and the modulated 2D supersolid phase of dipolar BECs. This work builds on our previous investigation of vortices in dipolar gases (see our writeups here and here) and of supersolids with two-dimensional crystalline order (see our writeup here). This opens the door to study the hydrodynamic properties of exotic quantum systems with multiple spontaneously broken symmetries, ranging from quantum crystals to neutron stars — for a general overview of the connection between glitches in the supersolid and neutron stars, see our writeup here.
See the article in Nature here: Observation of vortices in a dipolar supersolid
Read the pre-print here: arXiv:2403.18510.
Read the feature by Quanta Magazine here: Physicists spot quantum tornadoes twirling in a supersolid