Emergence of superfluid transport in a dynamical system of ultracold atoms

TL;DR

This paper investigates how nonlinear interactions in a Bose-Einstein condensate enable superfluid transport by counteracting dephasing, analyzed through a quantum pendulum model in combined potentials.

Contribution

It introduces a theoretical analysis of superfluid transport emergence in ultracold atoms within combined potentials, highlighting the role of nonlinear interactions.

Findings

Nonlinear interactions counteract quantum dephasing.

Superfluid transport emerges in certain dynamical regimes.

Stable collective oscillations are characterized by a quantum pendulum model.

Abstract

The dynamics of a Bose-Einstein condensate is studied theoretically in a combined periodic plus harmonic external potential. Different dynamical regimes of stable and unstable collective dipole and Bloch oscillations are analysed in terms of a quantum mechanical pendulum model. Nonlinear interactions are shown to counteract quantum-mechanical dephasing and lead to phase-coherent, superfluid transport.