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Chuan-Hsun Li

Publications and source records attributed to Chuan-Hsun Li.

8 recordsLinked to original sources

Self-calibrated multiparameter measurement of three-dimensional microwave fields

Rydberg atoms are promising for microwave (MW) sensing and control, but full local MW characterization remains difficult. Existing methods generally do not provide self-calibrated reconstruction of the three-dimensional vector field, which is valuable for both atom-based sensing and in-situ field characterization in complex electromagnetic environments. We propose and implement multi-level, Zeeman-resolved Rydberg electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) spectroscopy in a laser-cooled atomic ensemble. We extract the three polarization amplitudes from a single spectrum and show that the MW polarization components give rise to closed interferometric loops within the atoms' internal Hilbert space, enabling extraction of their relative phases. Moreover, it is self-calibrated and requires no external reference MW fields, with MW parameters largely separable from one another and from other experimental parameters. These features make it broadly applicable to dedicated sensing platforms as well as quantum optics and quantum information experiments.

physics.atom-ph

Expansion dynamics of Bose-Einstein condensates in a synthetic magnetic field

We investigate the expansion dynamics of spin-orbit-coupled Bose-Einstein condensates subjected to a synthetic magnetic field, after their release from an external harmonic trap. Our findings reveal that the condensate experiences a spin-dependent rotation and separation due to the rigid-like rotational velocity field, which leads to a spin density deflection. The deflection angle reaches a peak at a time that is inversely related to the frequency of the harmonic trap. When the detuning gradient is below a critical value for vortex nucleation, our analytical results derived from a spinor hydrodynamic theory align closely with numerical results using the coupled Gross-Pitaevskii equations. Beyond this critical value, we also numerically simulated the expansion dynamics of the condensates containing vortices with negative circulation. Our findings highlight the pivotal role of the rigid-like rotational velocity field on the dynamics of the condensate and may stimulate further experimental investigations into the rich superfluid dynamics induced by synthetic magnetic fields.

cond-mat.quant-gas

Scissors Modes of a Bose-Einstein Condensate in a Synthetic Magnetic Field

We study the scissors modes of a harmonically trapped Bose-Einstein condensate under the influence of a synthetic magnetic field, which induces rigid rotational components in the velocity field. Our investigation reveals that the scissors mode, excited in the plane perpendicular to the synthetic magnetic field, becomes coupled to the quadrupole modes of the condensate, giving rise to typical beating effects. Moreover, the two scissors modes excited in the vertical planes are also coupled together by the synthetic magnetic field, resulting in intriguing gyroscope dynamics. Our analytical results, derived from a spinor hydrodynamic theory, are further validated through numerical simulations of the three-dimensional Gross-Pitaevskii equation. These predictions for the condensates subject to a synthetic magnetic field are experimentally accessible with current cold-atom setups and hold promise for potential applications in quantum sensing.

cond-mat.quant-gas

Bose-Einstein Condensate on a Synthetic Topological Hall Cylinder

The interplay between matter particles and gauge fields in physical spaces with nontrivial geometries can lead to novel topological quantum matter. However, detailed microscopic mechanisms are often obscure, and unconventional spaces are generally challenging to construct in solids. Highly controllable atomic systems can quantum simulate such physics, even those inaccessible in other platforms. Here, we realize a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) on a synthetic cylindrical surface subject to a net radial synthetic magnetic flux. We observe a symmetry-protected topological band structure emerging on this Hall cylinder but disappearing in the planar counterpart. BEC's transport observed as Bloch oscillations in the band structure is analogous to traveling on a Möbius strip in the momentum space, revealing topological band crossings protected by a nonsymmorphic symmetry. We demonstrate that breaking this symmetry induces a topological transition manifested as gap opening at band crossings, and further manipulate the band structure and BEC's transport by controlling the axial synthetic magnetic flux. Our work opens the door for using atomic quantum simulators to explore intriguing topological phenomena intrinsic in unconventional spaces.

cond-mat.quant-gas

Spin current generation and relaxation in a quenched spin-orbit-coupled Bose-Einstein condensate

Understanding the effects of spin-orbit coupling (SOC) and many-body interactions on spin transport is important in condensed matter physics and spintronics. This topic has been intensively studied for spin carriers such as electrons but barely explored for charge-neutral bosonic quasiparticles (including their condensates), which hold promises for coherent spin transport over macroscopic distances. Here, we explore the effects of synthetic SOC (induced by optical Raman coupling) and atomic interactions on the spin transport in an atomic Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC), where the spin-dipole mode (SDM, actuated by quenching the Raman coupling) of two interacting spin components constitutes an alternating spin current. We experimentally observe that SOC significantly enhances the SDM damping while reducing the thermalization (the reduction of the condensate fraction). We also observe generation of BEC collective excitations such as shape oscillations. Our theory reveals that the SOC-modified interference, immiscibility, and interaction between the spin components can play crucial roles in spin transport.

cond-mat.quant-gas

Observation of Quantum Interference and Coherent Control in a Photochemical Reaction

Coherent control of reactants remains a longstanding challenge in quantum chemistry. In particular, we have studied laser-induced molecular formation (photoassociation) in a Raman-dressed spin-orbit-coupled 87Rb Bose-Einstein condensate, whose spin quantum state is a superposition of multiple bare spin components. In contrast to the notably different photoassociation-induced fractional atom losses observed for the bare spin components of a statistical mixture, a superposition state with a comparable spin composition displays the same fractional loss on every spin component. We interpret this as the superposition state itself undergoing photoassociation. For superposition states induced by a large Raman coupling and zero Raman detuning, we observe a nearly complete suppression of the photoassociation rate. This suppression is consistent with a model based upon quantum destructive interference between two photoassociation pathways for colliding atoms with different spin combinations. This model also explains the measured dependence of the photoassociation rate on the Raman detuning at a moderate Raman coupling. Our work thus suggests that preparing atoms in quantum superpositions may represent a powerful new technique to coherently control photochemical reactions.

quant-ph

Stueckelberg interferometry using periodically driven spin-orbit coupled Bose-Einstein condensates

We study the single-particle dispersion of a spin-orbit coupled (SOC) Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) under the periodical modulation of the Raman coupling. This modulation introduces a further coupling of the SOC dressed eigenlevels, thus creating a second generation of modulation-dressed eigenlevels. Theoretical calculations show that these modulation-dressed eigenlevels feature a pair of avoided crossings and a richer spin-momentum locking, which we observe using BEC transport measurements. Furthermore, we use the pair of avoided crossings to engineer a tunable Stueckelberg interferometer that gives interference fringes in the spin polarization of BECs.

physics.atom-ph

Tunable Landau-Zener transitions in a spin-orbit coupled Bose-Einstein condensate

The Landau-Zener (LZ) transition is one of the most fundamental phenomena in quantum dynamics. It describes nonadiabatic transitions between quantum states near an avoided crossing that can occur in diverse physical systems. Here we report experimental measurements and tuning of LZ transitions between the dressed eigenlevels of a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) that is synthetically spin-orbit (SO) coupled. We measure the transition probability as the BEC is accelerated through the SO avoided crossing and study its dependence on the coupling between the diabatic (bare) states, eigenlevel slope, and eigenstate velocity--the three parameters of the LZ model that are independently controlled in our experiments. Furthermore, we performed time-resolved measurements to demonstrate the breaking down of the spin-momentum locking of the spin-orbit-coupled BEC in the nonadiabatic regime, and we determined the diabatic switching time of the LZ transitions. Our observations show quantitative agreement with the LZ model and numerical simulations of the quantum dynamics in the quasimomentum space. The tunable LZ transition may be exploited to enable a spin-dependent atomtronic transistor.

cond-mat.quant-gas