Transition from a two-dimensional superfluid to a one-dimensional Mott insulator

Abstract

A two-dimensional system of atoms in an anisotropic optical lattice is studied theoretically. If the system is finite in one direction, it is shown to exhibit a transition between a two-dimensional superfluid and a one-dimensional Mott insulating chain of superfluid tubes. Monte Carlo simulations are consistent with the expectation that the phase transition is of Kosterlitz-Thouless type. The effect of the transition on experimental time-of-flight images is discussed.

4 pages, 4 figures. Slightly revised according to referee requests

References in corpus (2)

• Interacting Bose gases in quasi-one dimensional optical lattices
• Deconfinement in a 2D optical lattice of coupled 1D boson systems

Cited by in corpus (1)

• One-dimensional phase transitions in a two-dimensional optical lattice