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Non-quantization of Current in an Annular Bose-Einstein Condensate

Published

Author(s)

D L. Feder, L A. Collins, Charles W. Clark

Abstract

The circulating states of a Bose-Einstein condensate confined in an annulus are investigated both analytically and numerically. It is demonstrated that while single-valuedness of the condensate wavefunction ensures the quantization of circulation in this geometry, it does not guarantee the quantization of angular momentum nor specify the current: the localized phase offsets associated with dark solitons may compensate for any mismatch in the condensate phase at a boundary. We explore the implications for recent attempts to excite circulating currents by phase imprinting.
Citation
Physical Review Letters

Keywords

Bose-Einstein condensation, quantized circulation, solitons, superfluidity

Citation

Feder, D. , Collins, L. and Clark, C. (2008), Non-quantization of Current in an Annular Bose-Einstein Condensate, Physical Review Letters (Accessed March 28, 2024)
Created October 16, 2008