Atomic Josephson vortex

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates controllable manipulation of Josephson vortices in atomic Bose-Einstein condensates via chemical potential differences, highlighting their robustness and proposing methods for creation and detection.

Contribution

It introduces a novel control mechanism for Josephson vortices in BECs based on chemical potential differences and suggests practical creation and detection techniques.

Findings

Josephson vortices can be manipulated by chemical potential differences

Vortices are robust across parameter ranges

Phase imprinting can create vortices and interference patterns can identify them

Abstract

We show that Josephson vortices in a quasi-1D atomic Bose Josephson junction can be controllably manipulated by imposing a difference of chemical potentials on the atomic BEC waveguides forming the junction. This effect, which has its origin in the Berry phase structure of a vortex, turns out to be very robust in the whole range of the parameters where such vortices can exist. We also propose that a Josephson vortex can be created by the phase imprinting technique and can be identified by a specific tangential feature in the interference picture produced by expanding clouds released from the waveguides.