Coherent population transfer beyond the adiabatic limit: generalized matched pulses and higher-order trapping states

We show that the physical mechanism of population transfer in a 3-level system with a closed loop of coherent couplings (loop-STIRAP) is not equivalent to an adiabatic rotation of the dark-state of the Hamiltonian but coresponds to a rotation of a higher-order trapping state in a generalized adiabatic basis. The concept of generalized adiabatic basis sets is used as a constructive tool to design pulse sequences for stimulated Raman adiabatic passage (STIRAP) which give maximum population transfer also under conditions when the usual condition of adiabaticty is only poorly fulfilled. Under certain conditions for the pulses (generalized matched pulses) there exists a higher-order trapping state, which is an exact constant of motion and analytic solutions for the atomic dynamics can be derived.Comment: 15 pages, 9 figure

Quantum liquid of repulsively bound pairs of particles in a lattice

Repulsively interacting particles in a periodic potential can form bound composite objects, whose dissociation is suppressed by a band gap. Nearly pure samples of such repulsively bound pairs of cold atoms -- "dimers" -- have recently been prepared by Winkler et al. [Nature 441, 853 (2006)]. We here derive an effective Hamiltonian for a lattice loaded with dimers only and discuss its implications to the many-body dynamics of the system. We find that the dimer-dimer interaction includes strong on-site repulsion and nearest-neighbor attraction which always dominates over the dimer kinetic energy at low temperatures. The dimers then form incompressible, minimal-surface "droplets" of a quantum lattice liquid. For low lattice filling, the effective Hamiltonian can be mapped onto the spin-1/2 XXZ model with fixed total magnetization which exhibits a first-order phase transition from the "droplet" to a "gas" phase. This opens the door to studying first order phase transitions using highly controllable ultracold atoms.Comment: Corrected dimer energy & reference

Entanglement and criticality in translational invariant harmonic lattice systems with finite-range interactions

We discuss the relation between entanglement and criticality in translationally invariant harmonic lattice systems with non-randon, finite-range interactions. We show that the criticality of the system as well as validity or break-down of the entanglement area law are solely determined by the analytic properties of the spectral function of the oscillator system, which can easily be computed. In particular for finite-range couplings we find a one-to-one correspondence between an area-law scaling of the bi-partite entanglement and a finite correlation length. This relation is strict in the one-dimensional case and there is strog evidence for the multi-dimensional case. We also discuss generalizations to couplings with infinite range. Finally, to illustrate our results, a specific 1D example with nearest and next-nearest neighbor coupling is analyzed.Comment: 4 pages, one figure, revised versio

Light-induced effective magnetic fields for ultracold atoms in planar geometries

We propose a scheme to create an effective magnetic field for ultracold atoms in a planar geometry. The setup allows the experimental study of classical and quantum Hall effects in close analogy to solid-state systems including the possibility of finite currents. The present scheme is an extention of the proposal in Phys. Rev. Lett. 93, 033602 (2004), where the effective magnetic field is now induced for three-level Lambda-type atoms by two counterpropagating laser beams with shifted spatial profiles. Under conditions of electromagnetically induced transparency the atom-light interaction has a space-dependent dark state, and the adiabatic center-of-mass motion of atoms in this state experiences effective vector and scalar potentials. The associated magnetic field is oriented perpendicular to the propagation direction of the laser beams. The field strength achievable is one flux quantum over an area given by the transverse beam separation and the laser wavelength. For a sufficiently dilute gas the field is strong enough to reach the lowest Landau level regime