Interaction of atomic quantum gases with a single carbon nanotube

TL;DR

This paper presents an ab-initio method to predict atom loss rates in hybrid quantum systems involving a carbon nanotube and ultracold gases, accurately matching experimental data and highlighting the importance of retardation effects.

Contribution

It introduces a parameter-free, exact approach considering Casimir-Polder interactions and system geometry, advancing understanding of atom-nanotube inelastic processes.

Findings

Predicted loss rates match experimental results for rubidium gases.

Retardation effects significantly influence trap loss in thermal clouds.

Exact interaction potentials are crucial for accurate modeling.

Abstract

We study inelastic processes in the hybrid quantum system constituted by a carbon nanotube (CNT) in contact with an ultracold quantum gas, such as a cloud of thermal atoms or a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC). We present a parameter-free ab-initio approach for the loss rate based on the underlying scattering process, considering the two-dimensional character of the system as well as the exact Casimir-Polder potential. The predicted loss rates are in perfect agreement with recent experimental results, obtained both for a thermal cloud of rubidium atoms and for a BEC. For the trap loss of a thermal cloud, we find that retardation effects become important and contribute significantly, which emphasises the crucial role of the exact interaction potential.