Anderson Localization of cold atomic gases with effective spin-orbit interaction in a quasiperiodic optical lattice

TL;DR

This paper explores how spin-orbit coupling affects localization in cold atomic gases within a quasiperiodic optical lattice, revealing phase transitions, mobility edges, and mixed spectra through theoretical analysis and simulations.

Contribution

It introduces a theoretical framework for understanding localization phenomena in spin-orbit coupled cold atoms in quasiperiodic lattices, highlighting the emergence of mobility edges and spectrum mixing.

Findings

Spin-orbit coupling induces spectrum mixing and coexistence of extended and localized states.

Mobility edges appear due to spin-orbit interactions.

Phase diagram mapped in disorder and spin-orbit parameter space.

Abstract

We theoretically investigate the localization properties of a spin-orbit coupled spin-1/2 particle moving in a one-dimensional quasiperiodic potential, which can be experimentally implemented using cold atoms trapped in a quasiperiodic optical lattice potential and external laser fields. We present the phase diagram in the parameter space of the disorder strength and those related to the spin-orbit coupling. The phase diagram is verified via multifractal analysis of the atomic wavefunctions and the numerical simulation of diffusion dynamics. We found that spin-orbit coupling can lead to the spectra mixing (coexistence of extended and localized states) and the appearance of mobility edges.