Phases of cold atoms interacting via photon-mediated long-range forces

Abstract

Atoms in high-finesse optical resonators interact via the photons they multiply scatter into the cavity modes. The dynamics is characterized by dispersive and dissipative optomechanical long-range forces, which are mediated by the cavity photons, and exhibits a steady state for certain parameter regimes. In standing-wave cavities the atoms can form stable spatial gratings. Moreover, their asymptotic distribution is a Maxwell-Boltzmann whose effective temperature is controlled by the laser parameters. In this work we show that in a two-mode standing-wave cavity the stationary state possesses the same properties and phases of the Generalized Hamiltonian Mean Field model in the canonical ensemble. This model has three equilibrium phases: a paramagnetic, a nematic, and a ferromagnetic one, which here correspond to different spatial orders of the atomic gas and can be detected by means of the light emitted by the cavities. We further discuss perspectives for investigating in this setup the ensemble inequivalence predicted for the Generalized Hamiltonian Mean Field model.

13 pages, 4 figures

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• Balancing long-range interactions and quantum pressure: solitons in the HMF model
• The effect of disorder on the phase diagrams of hard-core lattice bosons with cavity-mediated long-range and nearest-neighbor interactions
• Phase diagrams of the disordered Bose-Hubbard model with cavity-mediated long-range and nearest-neighbor interactions
• Self-ordering and cavity cooling using a train of ultrashort pulses
• Master Equation for a Quantum Gas of Polarizable Particles in Cavities
• Classical and quantum harmonic mean-field models coupled intensively and extensively with external baths
• Lindblad master equations for quantum systems coupled to dissipative bosonic modes