Ultracold atoms in optical potentials : from noise-induced transport to superfluidity

Abstract: In this thesis, both experimental studies and numerical simulations of ultracold atoms in optical potentials are presented in a collection of nine scientific papers. In particular, noise-induced transport in dissipative optical lattices and superfluid properties of Bose-Einstein condensates have been studied. Noise is usually regarded as a complication to most systems and as something that needs to be minimized. However, in a series of experiments at Umeå University, noise has been shown to play a key role for laser-cooled cesium atoms trapped in dissipative optical lattices. By using a combination of two dissipative optical lattices, where the relative spatial phase between them can be controlled, a so-called Brownian motor can be realized, where energy can be extracted from the inherent noise. In the experiment, this energy is used to control the transport of the laser-cooled atoms in real time and along pre-designed paths. This thesis also presents a way to characterize this system in terms of energy conversion efficiency and coherence of the transport, which may allow for a more straightforward comparison with other systems that rely on noise rectification. In the studies, it is also shown that the noise triggers a downward drift due to gravity, even though the optical potential should support the atoms. Further investigation of this might help to understand the underlying principles of laser cooling, as well as showing that the system might be suitable as a flexible test bed for statistical physics. In close relation to the experimental system, two numerical simulations are also presented, one in which different ways to induce asymmetries between two periodic potentials are investigated, and one in which a proposal for detecting quantum walks is explored. In the second part of the thesis, a work from the Joint Quantum Institute is presented, where a long-lived persistent current in a toroidal Bose-Einstein condensate, held in an all-optical trap, is created. The critical velocity of the superflow is measured in the presence of a tunable barrier. The system can be seen as a first realization of an elementary closed-loop atom circuit. Finally a theoretical study of the crossover between one- and two-dimensional systems is presented, in particular the transition between a two-dimensional superfluid to a one-dimensional Mott insulator is investigated.