Fast transport and splitting of spin-orbit-coupled spin-1 Bose-Einstein Condensates

TL;DR

This paper develops fast, controlled methods for transporting and splitting spin-orbit-coupled spin-1 Bose-Einstein condensates using shortcuts to adiabaticity, enabling rapid spin manipulation and state engineering.

Contribution

It introduces a novel approach to rapidly transport and manipulate spin-1 BECs with spin-orbit coupling via tailored trap trajectories and coupling strength modulation.

Findings

Successful design of time-dependent trap and spin-orbit coupling protocols

Creation of spin-dependent coherent states through engineered coupling

Analysis of stability and feasibility for experimental implementation

Abstract

In this study, we investigate the dynamics of tunable spin-orbit-coupled spin-1 Bose-Einstein condensates confined within a harmonic trap, focusing on rapid transport, spin manipulation, and splitting dynamics. Using shortcuts to adiabaticity, we design time-dependent trap trajectories and spin-orbit-coupling strength to facilitate fast transport with simultaneous spin flip. Additionally, we showcase the creation of spin-dependent coherent states via engineering the spin-orbit-coupling strength. To deepen our understanding, we elucidate non-adiabatic transport and associated spin dynamics, contrasting them with simple scenarios characterized by constant spin-orbit coupling and trap velocity. Furthermore, we discuss the transverse Zeeman potential and nonlinear effect induced by interatomic interactions using the Gross-Pitaevskii equation, highlighting the stability and feasibility of the proposed protocols for the state-of-the-art experiments with cold atoms.