To detect the looped Bloch bands of Bose-Einstein condensates in optical lattices

TL;DR

This paper proposes experimental methods to detect looped Bloch bands in Bose-Einstein condensates within optical lattices by observing nonlinear Landau-Zener tunneling and Bloch oscillation destruction.

Contribution

It introduces practical detection techniques for the looped Bloch bands using numerical simulations of Bose-Einstein condensates in optical lattices.

Findings

Loop can be detected via nonlinear Landau-Zener tunneling

Loop detection through destruction of Bloch oscillations

Numerical simulations confirm experimental feasibility

Abstract

A loop structure was predicted to exist in the Bloch bands of Bose-Einstein condensates in optical lattices recently in [{\it Wu and Niu, Phys. Rev. A {\bf 61}, 023402 (2000)}]. We discuss how to detect experimentally the looped band with an accelerating optical lattice through extensive and realistic numerical simulations. We find that the loop can be detected through observing either nonlinear Landau-Zener tunneling or destruction of Bloch oscillations.