Quantum dynamics of one and two bosonic atoms in a combined tight-binding periodic and weak parabolic potential

TL;DR

This paper investigates the quantum dynamics of one and two bosonic atoms in a combined tight-binding lattice and weak parabolic potential, revealing conditions for coherent transport and oscillations relevant for quantum information transfer.

Contribution

It provides a detailed analysis of interaction-bound dimers in combined potentials, highlighting differences between attractive and repulsive cases and conditions for analogous dynamics.

Findings

Identification of conditions for coherent transport and oscillations

Differences in behavior between attractive and repulsive dimers

Potential for quantum information transfer in optical lattices

Abstract

Strongly interacting bosonic particles in a tight-binding periodic potential superimposed by a weak parabolic trap is a paradigm for many cold atom experiments. Here, after revisiting the single particle problem, we study interaction-bound dimers of bosonic atoms in the combined lattice and parabolic potential. We consider both repulsively- and attractively-bound dimers and find pronounced differences in their behaviour. We identify conditions under which attractive and repulsive dimers exhibit analogous dynamics. Our studies reveal that coherent transport and periodic oscillations of appropriately prepared one- and two-atom wavepackets can be achieved, which may facilitate information transfer in optical lattice based quantum computation schemes.