arXiv subjects

Oliver R. Stockdale

Publications and source records attributed to Oliver R. Stockdale.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2022

Turbulent relaxation to equilibrium in a two-dimensional quantum vortex gas

We experimentally study emergence of microcanonical equilibrium states in the turbulent relaxation dynamics of a two-dimensional chiral vortex gas. Same-sign vortices are injected into a quasi-two-dimensional disk-shaped atomic Bose-Einstein condensate using a range of mechanical stirring protocols. The resulting long-time vortex distributions are found to be in excellent agreement with the meanfield Poisson-Boltzmann equation for the system describing the microcanonical ensemble at fixed energy $\cal{H}$ and angular momentum $\cal{M}$. The equilibrium states are characterized by the corresponding thermodynamic variables of inverse temperature $\hatβ$ and rotation frequency $\hatω$. We are able to realize equilibria spanning the full phase diagram of the vortex gas, including on-axis states near zero-temperature, infinite temperature, and negative absolute temperatures. At sufficiently high energies the system exhibits a symmetry-breaking transition, resulting in an off-axis equilibrium phase at negative absolute temperature that no longer shares the symmetry of the container. We introduce a point-vortex model with phenomenological damping and noise that is able to quantitatively reproduce the equilibration dynamics.

cond-mat.quant-gas↗

arXiv2022

Entropic entanglement criteria in phase space

We derive entropic inseparability criteria for the phase space representation of quantum states. In contrast to criteria involving differential entropies of marginal phase space distributions, our criteria are based on a joint distribution known as the Husimi Q-distribution. This distribution is experimentally accessible in cold atoms, circuit QED architectures and photonic systems and bears practical advantages compared to the detection of marginals. We exemplify the strengths of our entropic approach by considering several classes of non-Gaussian states where second-order criteria fail. We show that our criteria certify entanglement in previously undetectable regions highlighting the strength of using the Husimi Q-distribution for entanglement detection.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2021

Dynamical mechanisms of vortex pinning in superfluid thin films

We characterize the mechanisms of vortex pinning in a superfluid thin film described by the two-dimensional Gross-Pitaevskii equation. We consider a vortex "scattering experiment" whereby a single vortex in a superfluid flow interacts with a circular, uniform pinning potential. By an analogy with linear dielectrics, we develop an analytical hydrodynamic approximation that predicts vortex trajectories, the vortex fixed point and the unpinning velocity. We then solve the Gross-Pitaevskii equation to validate this model, and build a phase portrait of vortex pinning. We identify two different dynamical pinning mechanisms marked by distinctive phonon emission signatures: one enabled by acoustic radiation and another mediated by vortex dipoles nucleated within the pin. Relative to obstacle size, we find that pinning potentials on the order of the healing length are more effective for vortex capture. Our results could be useful in mitigating the negative effects of drag due to vortices in superfluid channels, in analogy to maximising supercurrents in type-II superconductors.

cond-mat.quant-gas↗

arXiv2020

Universal expansion of vortex clusters in a dissipative two-dimensional superfluid

A large ensemble of quantum vortices in a superfluid may itself be treated as a novel kind of fluid that exhibits anomalous hydrodynamics. Here we consider the dynamics of vortex clusters with thermal friction, and present an analytic solution that uncovers a new universality class in the out-of-equilibrium dynamics of dissipative superfluids. We find that the long-time dynamics of the vorticity distribution is an expanding Rankine vortex (i.e.~top-hat distribution) independent of initial conditions. This highlights a fundamentally different decay process to classical fluids, where the Rankine vortex is forbidden by viscous diffusion. Numerical simulations of large ensembles of point vortices confirm the universal expansion dynamics, and further reveal the emergence of a frustrated lattice structure marked by strong correlations. We present experimental results in a quasi-two-dimensional Bose-Einstein condensate that are in excellent agreement with the vortex fluid theory predictions, demonstrating that the signatures of vortex fluid theory can be observed with as few as $N\sim 11$ vortices. Our theoretical, numerical, and experimental results establish the validity of the vortex fluid theory for superfluid systems.

cond-mat.quant-gas↗

arXiv2019

Coherent vortex dynamics in a strongly-interacting superfluid on a silicon chip

Two-dimensional superfluidity and quantum turbulence are directly connected to the microscopic dynamics of quantized vortices. However, surface effects have prevented direct observations of coherent vortex dynamics in strongly-interacting two-dimensional systems. Here, we overcome this challenge by confining a two-dimensional droplet of superfluid helium at microscale on the atomically-smooth surface of a silicon chip. An on-chip optical microcavity allows laser-initiation of vortex clusters and nondestructive observation of their decay in a single shot. Coherent dynamics dominate, with thermal vortex diffusion suppressed by six orders-of-magnitude. This establishes a new on-chip platform to study emergent phenomena in strongly-interacting superfluids, test astrophysical dynamics such as those in the superfluid core of neutron stars in the laboratory, and construct quantum technologies such as precision inertial sensors.

cond-mat.other↗