Spontaneous symmetry breaking in rotating condensates of ultracold atoms

Abstract

We describe an equilibrium state of a rotating trapped atomic condensate, which is characterized by a non-zero internal circulation and spontaneous breaking of the rotational O(2) symmetry with all three major semiaxes of the condensate having different values. The macroscopic rotation of the condensate is supported by a mesh of quantized vortices, whose number density is a function of internal circulation. The oscillation modes of this state are computed and the Goldstone mode associated with the loss of the symmetry is identified. The possible avenues for experimental identification this state are discussed.

v1: 4 pages, 3 figures; v2: 5 pages, 4 figures, minor changes, matches published version

References in corpus (6)

• Theory of ultracold Fermi gases
• Vortices and Superfluidity in a Strongly Interacting Fermi Gas
• Direct Observation of the Superfluid Phase Transition in Ultracold Fermi Gases
• Observation of vortex formation in an oscillating trapped Bose-Einstein condensate
• Superfluid Expansion of a Strongly Interacting Fermi Gas
• Breathing modes of a fast rotating Fermi gas