Microscopic Observation of Pauli Blocking in Degenerate Fermionic Lattice Gases

TL;DR

This paper presents a local observation of Pauli blocking in a spin-polarized degenerate fermionic gas within an optical lattice, using advanced microscopy to measure quantum correlations and fluctuations.

Contribution

It introduces a novel quantum gas microscopy technique that avoids light-induced losses, enabling direct observation of Pauli exclusion effects at the single-site level.

Findings

Strong local suppression of particle number fluctuations in the band insulating regime

Low local entropy per atom indicating high quantum degeneracy

Potential for studying quantum correlations in fermionic matter

Abstract

The Pauli exclusion principle is one of the most fundamental manifestations of quantum statistics. Here, we report on its local observation in a spin-polarized degenerate gas of fermions in an optical lattice. We probe the gas with single-site resolution using a new generation quantum gas microscope avoiding the common problem of light induced losses. In the band insulating regime, we measure a strong local suppression of particle number fluctuations and a low local entropy per atom. Our work opens a new avenue for studying quantum correlations in fermionic quantum matter both in and out of equilibrium.