Dilute Quantum Droplets

TL;DR

This paper explores how three-body correlations, especially Efimov effects, can lead to self-bound quantum droplets in Bose-Einstein and Fermi-Dirac systems under specific dilute conditions.

Contribution

It introduces the concept that three-body effects can dominate the energy density, enabling the formation of self-bound quantum droplets in dilute quantum gases.

Findings

Three-body correlations can dominate the energy in dilute quantum gases.

Self-bound droplets can form in Bose and Fermi systems due to Efimov effects.

Conditions for droplet formation depend on the diluteness parameter |^3.

Abstract

In the limit when the two-body scattering length $a$ is negative and much larger than the effective two-body interaction radius the contribution to the ground state energy due to the three-body correlations is given by the Efimov effect. For particular values of the diluteness parameter $\rho |a|^3$ the three-body contribution can become the dominant term of the energy density functional. Under these conditions both Bose-Einstein and Fermi-Dirac systems could become self-bound and either boson droplets or fermion ``designer nuclei'' of various sizes and densities could be manufactured.