Analogue gravitational lensing in optical Bose-Einstein condensates

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates how phonons in a photon Bose-Einstein condensate can simulate gravitational lensing effects caused by spacetime curvature around a vortex, providing insights into analogue gravity phenomena.

Contribution

It introduces a model of acoustic black hole analogues in photonic BECs and analyzes phonon trajectories as a simulation of gravitational lensing effects.

Findings

Phonons experience bending of trajectories near vortices.

Vortices can simulate static acoustic black holes.

Phonon paths mimic gravitational lensing effects.

Abstract

We consider acoustic propagation of phonons in the presence of a non-rotating vortex with radial flow in a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) of photons. Since the vortex can be used to simulate a static acoustic black hole, the phonon would experience a considerable spacetime curvature at appreciable distance from the vortex core. The trajectory of the phonons is bended after passing by the vortex, which can be used as a simulation of gravitational lensing for phonons in a photonic BEC.