Investigation on the Formation of Laser Transverse Pattern Possessing Optical Lattices

Optical lattices (OLs) with diverse transverse patterns and optical vortex lattices (OVLs) with special phase singularities have played important roles in the fields of atomic cooling, particle manipulation, quantum entanglement, and optical communication. As a matter of consensus until now, the OL patterns are generated by coherently superimposing multiple transverse modes with a fixed phase difference through the transverse mode locking (TML) effect. There are phase singularities in the dark area of this kind of OL pattern, so it is also called OVL pattern. However, in our research, it is found that some high-order complex symmetric OL patterns can hardly be analyzed by TML model. Instead, the analysis method of incoherent superposition of mode intensity could be applied. The OL pattern obtained by this method can be regarded as in non-TML state. Therefore, in this article, we mainly study the distinct characteristics and properties of OL patterns in TML and non-TML states. Through intensity comparison, interferometry, and beat frequency spectrum, we can effectively distinguish OL pattern in TML and non-TML states, which is of significance to explore the formation of laser transverse pattern possessing OL.

Dynamics of two-dimensional multi-peak solitons based on the fractional Schrödinger equation

We address the propagation dynamics of two-dimensional multi-peak solitons in the optical lattices based on the fractional Schrödinger equation. The effect of Lévy index and lattice depth on the band-gap structure of optical lattices are presented. Two-, three-, four-, six- and eight-peak solitons all can exist in the first gap and be stable in a wide region of their existence domain. The effective width, maximal peak value and the power of soliton are also studied. It indicates that the Lévy index plays a significant role on the properties of solitons.

Quantum gas magnifier for sub-lattice-resolved imaging of 3D quantum systems

Imaging is central to gaining microscopic insight into physical systems, and new microscopy methods have always led to the discovery of new phenomena and a deeper understanding of them. Ultracold atoms in optical lattices provide a quantum simulation platform, featuring a variety of advanced detection tools including direct optical imaging while pinning the atoms in the lattice1,2. However, this approach suffers from the diffraction limit, high optical density and small depth of focus, limiting it to two-dimensional (2D) systems. Here we introduce an imaging approach where matter wave optics magnifies the density distribution before optical imaging, allowing 2D sub-lattice-spacing resolution in three-dimensional (3D) systems. By combining the site-resolved imaging with magnetic resonance techniques for local addressing of individual lattice sites, we demonstrate full accessibility to 2D local information and manipulation in 3D systems. We employ the high-resolution images for precision thermodynamics of Bose–Einstein condensates in optical lattices as well as studies of thermalization dynamics driven by thermal hopping. The sub-lattice resolution is demonstrated via quench dynamics within the lattice sites. The method opens the path for spatially resolved studies of new quantum many-body regimes, including exotic lattice geometries or sub-wavelength lattices3–6, and paves the way for single-atom-resolved imaging of atomic species, where efficient laser cooling or deep optical traps are not available, but which substantially enrich the toolbox of quantum simulation of many-body systems.