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Landau levels and the Thomas-Fermi structure of rapidly rotating Bose-Einstein condensates

Gentaro Watanabe·Gordon Baym·C. J. Pethick
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Abstract

We show that, within mean-field theory, the density profile of a rapidly rotating harmonically trapped Bose-Einstein condensate is of the Thomas-Fermi form as long as the number of vortices is much larger than unity. Two forms of the condensate wave function are explored: i) the lowest Landau level (LLL) wave function with a regular lattice of vortices multiplied by a slowly varying envelope function, which gives rise to components in higher Landau levels; ii) the LLL wave function with a nonuniform vortex lattice. From variational calculations we find it most favorable energetically to retain the LLL form of the wave function but to allow the vortices to deviate slightly from a regular lattice. The predicted distortions of the lattice are small, but in accord with recent measurements at lower rates of rotation.

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Gentaro Watanabe, Gordon Baym, C. J. Pethick. 2004-10-22. Landau levels and the Thomas-Fermi structure of rapidly rotating Bose-Einstein condensates. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevlett.93.190401

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