Non-Abelian optical lattices: Anomalous quantum Hall effect and Dirac Fermions

TL;DR

This paper explores how ultracold Fermi gases in optical lattices with non-Abelian gauge fields can simulate relativistic quantum phenomena, revealing novel effects like anomalous quantum Hall behavior and modified space-time properties.

Contribution

It introduces a method to emulate relativistic quantum electrodynamics and Dirac fermions using cold atom systems with non-Abelian gauge fields.

Findings

Observation of anomalous quantum Hall effect.

Simulation of massless Dirac fermions.

Modification of Minkowski space-time regimes.

Abstract

We study the properties of an ultracold Fermi gas loaded in an optical square lattice and subjected to an external and classical non-Abelian gauge field. We show that this system can be exploited as an optical analogue of relativistic quantum electrodynamics, offering a remarkable route to access the exotic properties of massless Dirac fermions with cold atoms experiments. In particular we show that the underlying Minkowski space-time can also be modified, reaching anisotropic regimes where a remarkable anomalous quantum Hall effect and a squeezed Landau vacuum could be observed.