Interacting atoms in optical lattices

TL;DR

This paper introduces a versatile model for analyzing interacting atoms in optical lattices, capturing a wide interaction spectrum and coupling effects, with applications to spin dynamics and molecule formation.

Contribution

The paper presents a new, easy-to-use model that accounts for full interaction range and anharmonic coupling in optical lattices, enabling detailed analysis of atomic dynamics.

Findings

Energy transfer between relative and center-of-mass motion is possible under certain conditions.

Atomic interactions and anharmonic effects significantly influence spin dynamics.

Feshbach molecules can be created in excited lattice bands through this process.

Abstract

We propose an easy to use model to solve for interacting atoms in an optical lattice. This model allows for the whole range of weakly to strongly interacting atoms, and it includes the coupling between relative and center-of-mass motion via anharmonic lattice terms. We apply this model to a high-precision spin dynamics experiment, and we discuss the corrections due to atomic interactions and the anharmonic coupling. Under suitable experimental conditions, energy can be transferred between the relative and center-of-mass motion, and this allows for creation of Feshbach molecules in excited lattice bands.