We present various intense laser-driven electron dynamics simulations performed using a Volkov basis set and compare results with other popular choices of basis. The Volkov basis is comprised of plane waves modified by a time-dependent phase factor, allowing for improved accuracy over other representations such as a real-space grid or plane-wave basis. Alternatively, this advantage may be realized by being afforded significantly larger time-step sizes in wave-function propagation techniques. Comparisons of the Volkov basis set to other popular bases have been carried out for model one-dimensional finite and periodic systems as well as three-dimensional systems using time-dependent density functional theory, and the efficiency and accuracy of the Volkov approach have been demonstrated.

The $5p$ two-photon ionization cross section of xenon in the photon-energy range below the one-photon ionization threshold is calculated within the time-dependent configuration-interaction-singles (TDCIS) method. The TDCIS calculations are compared to random-phase-approximation calculations [Wendin et al., J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 4, 833 (1987)] and are found to reproduce the energy positions of the intermediate Rydberg states reasonably well. The effect of interchannel coupling is also investigated and found to change the cross section of the $5p$ shell only slightly compared to the intrachannel case.

Motivated by the experimental development of quasihomogeneous Bose-Einstein condensates confined in boxlike traps, we study numerically the dynamics of dark solitons in such traps at zero temperature. We consider the cases where the side walls of the box potential rise either as a power law or a Gaussian. While the soliton propagates through the homogeneous interior of the box without dissipation, it typically dissipates energy during a reflection from a wall through the emission of sound waves, causing a slight increase in the soliton's speed. We characterize this energy loss as a function of the wall parameters. Moreover, over multiple oscillations and reflections in the boxlike trap, the energy loss and speed increase of the soliton can be significant, although the decay eventually becomes stabilized when the soliton equilibrates with the ambient sound field.

We use tools from nonlinear dynamics for the detailed analysis of cold-atom experiments. A powerful example is provided by the recent concept of basin entropy, which allows us to quantify the final-state unpredictability that results from the complexity of the phase-space geometry. We show here that this enables one to reliably infer the presence of fractal structures in phase space from direct measurements. We illustrate the method with numerical simulations in an experimental configuration made of two crossing laser guides that can be used as a matter-wave splitter.

Dynamical diffraction leads to an interesting, unavoidable set of interference effects for neutron interferometers. This experiment studies the interference signal from two and three successive Bragg diffractions in the Laue geometry. We find that intrinsic Bragg-plane misalignment in monolithic, “perfect” silicon neutron interferometers is relevant between successive diffracting crystals, as well as within the Borrmann fan for typical interferometer geometries. We show that the dynamical phase correction employed in the Colella, Overhauser, and Werner gravitationally induced quantum interference experiments is attenuated by slight, intrinsic misalignments between diffracting crystals, potentially explaining the long-standing 1% discrepancy between theory and experiment. This systematic may also impact precision measurements of the silicon structure factor, affecting previous and future measurements of the Debye-Waller factor and neutron-electron scattering length as well as potential fifth-force searches. For the interferometers used in this experiment, Bragg planes of different diffracting crystals were found to be misaligned by 10 to 40 nrad.

A main distinguishing feature of non-Hermitian quantum mechanics is the presence of exceptional points (EPs). They correspond to the coalescence of two energy levels and their respective eigenvectors. Here, we use the Lipkin-Meshkov-Glick (LMG) model as a test bed to explore the strong connection between EPs and the onset of excited state quantum phase transitions (ESQPTs). We show that for finite systems, the exact degeneracies (EPs) obtained with the non-Hermitian LMG Hamiltonian continued into the complex plane are directly linked with the avoided crossings that characterize the ESQPTs for the real (physical) LMG Hamiltonian. The values of the complex control parameter $\alpha$ that lead to the EPs approach the real axis as the system size $N\to \infty$. This happens for both the EPs that are close to the separatrix that marks the ESQPT and also for those that are far away, although in the latter case, the convergence rate is smaller. With the method of Padé approximants, we can extract the critical value of $\alpha$.

We derive an analytic behavior of the Casimir free energy, entropy, and pressure of metallic films in a vacuum at low temperature. It is shown that this behavior differs significantly depending on whether the plasma or the Drude model is used to describe the dielectric properties of film metal. For metallic films described by the lossless plasma model the thermal corrections to the Casimir energy and pressure drop to zero exponentially fast with increasing film thickness. There is no classical limit in this case. The Casimir entropy satisfies the Nernst heat theorem. For metallic films with perfect crystal lattices described by the Drude model, the Casimir entropy at zero temperature takes a nonzero value depending on the parameters of a film, i.e., the Nernst heat theorem is violated. The Casimir entropy at zero temperature is positive, as opposed to the case of two metallic plates separated with a vacuum gap, where it is negative if the Drude model is used. Possible applications of the obtained results in investigations of the stability of thin films are discussed.

Motivated by recent interest in implementing circuit quantum electrodynamics with semiconducting quantum dots, we consider a double quantum dot (DQD) capacitively coupled to a superconducting resonator that is driven by the microwave field of a superconducting transmission line. We analyze the DQD current response using input-output theory and show that the resonator-coupled DQD is a sensitive microwave single photon detector. Using currently available experimental parameters of DQD-resonator coupling and dissipation, including the effects of $1/f$ charge noise and phonon noise, we determine the parameter regime for which incident photons are completely absorbed and near-unit $\gtrsim 98$% efficiency can be achieved. We show that this regime can be reached by using very high quality resonators with quality factor $Q\simeq {10}^5$.

We consider the calibration of an optical quantum gyroscope by modeling two Sagnac interferometers, mounted approximately at right angles to each other. Reliable operation requires that we know the angle between the interferometers with high precision, and we show that a procedure akin to multiposition testing in inertial navigation systems can be generalized to the case of quantum interferometry. We find that while entanglement is a key resource within an individual Sagnac interferometer, its presence between the interferometers is a far more complicated story. The optimum level of entanglement depends strongly on the sought parameter values, and small but significant improvements may be gained from choosing states with the optimal amount of entanglement between the interferometers.

We performed a study of the single ionization of iodine, ${\mathrm{I}}_2$ over a range of wavelengths. Single ionization of ${\mathrm{I}}_2$ is unexpectedly found to have a contribution from inner molecular orbitals involving the $5s$ electrons. The $\text{I}+{\text{I}}^{+}$ dissociation channel was recorded through velocity map imaging, and the kinetic-energy release of each channel was determined with two-dimensional fitting of the images. Most of the measured kinetic-energy data were inconsistent with ionization to the $X, A$, and $B$ states of ${\mathrm{I}}_2{}^{+}$, implying ionization from deeper orbitals. A pump-probe Fourier transform technique was used to look for modulation at the $X$- and $A$-state vibrational frequencies to see if they were intermediate states in a two-step process. $X$- and $A$-state modulation was seen only for kinetic-energy releases below 0.2 eV, consistent with dissociation through the $B$ state. From these results and intensity-, polarization-, and wavelength-dependent experiments we found no evidence of bond softening, electron rescattering, or photon mediation through the $X$ or $A$ states to higher-energy single-ionization channels.

We consider the formation of cold diatomic molecules in the electronic ground state by photoassociation of atoms of dissimilar species. A combination of two transition pathways from the free colliding pair of atoms to a bound vibrational level of the electronic molecular ground state is envisioned. The first pathway consists of a pump-dump scheme with two time-delayed laser pulses in the near-infrared frequency domain. The pump pulse drives the transition to a bound vibrational level of an excited electronic state, while the dump pulse transfers the population to a bound vibrational level of the electronic ground state. The second pathway takes advantage of the existing permanent dipole moment and employs a single pulse in the far-infrared domain to drive the transition from the unbound atoms directly to a bound vibrational level in the electronic ground state. We show that this scheme offers the possibility to coherently control the photoassociation yield by manipulating the relative phase and timing of the pulses. The photoassociation mechanism is illustrated for the formation of cold LiCs molecules.

The out-of-equilibrium dynamics of interaction quenched finite ultracold bosonic ensembles in periodically driven one-dimensional optical lattices is investigated. It is shown that periodic driving enforces the bosons in the outer wells of the finite lattice to exhibit out-of-phase dipolelike modes, while in the central well the atomic cloud experiences a local breathing mode. The dynamical behavior is investigated with varying driving frequencies, revealing resonantlike behavior of the intrawell dynamics. An interaction quench in the periodically driven lattice gives rise to admixtures of different excitations in the outer wells, enhanced breathing in the center, and amplification of the tunneling dynamics. We then observe multiple resonances between the inter- and the intrawell dynamics at different quench amplitudes, with the position of the resonances being tunable via the driving frequency. Our results pave the way for future investigations of the use of combined driving protocols in order to excite different inter- and intrawell modes and to subsequently control them.

Behavior analogous to that of spontaneous emission in photonic band-gap materials has been predicted for an atom-optical system consisting of an atom confined in a well of a state-dependent optical lattice that is coupled to free space through an internal-state transition [de Vega et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 101, 260404 (2008)]. Using the Weisskopf-Wigner approach and considering a one-dimensional geometry, we analyze the properties of this system in detail, including the evolution of the lattice-trapped population, the momentum distribution of emitted matter waves, and the detailed structure of an evanescent matter-wave state below the continuum boundary. We compare and contrast our findings for the transition from Markovian to non-Markovian behaviors to those previously obtained for three dimensions.

We propose to simulate a Dirac field near an event horizon using ultracold atoms in an optical lattice. Such a quantum simulator allows for the observation of the celebrated Unruh effect. Our proposal involves three stages: (1) preparation of the ground state of a massless two-dimensional Dirac field in Minkowski space-time; (2) quench of the optical lattice setup to simulate how an accelerated observer would view that state; (3) measurement of the local quantum fluctuation spectra by one-particle excitation spectroscopy in order to simulate a De Witt detector. According to Unruh's prediction, fluctuations measured in such a way must be thermal. Moreover, following Takagi's inversion theorem, they will obey the Bose-Einstein distribution, which will smoothly transform into the Fermi-Dirac as one of the dimensions of the lattice is reduced.

The quantum nature of elementary bosons can be completely erased by using coherent states known as Glauber states. Here, we consider composite bosons (cobosons) made of two fermions and look for the possibility of erasing the bosonic quantum nature of the field and the fermionic quantum nature of its constituents, when the distribution of the coboson Schmidt decomposition is either flat like Frenkel excitons or localized like Wannier excitons. We show that for Frenkel-like cobosons, complete erasure of the field quantum nature is possible up to a density that is a sizable fraction of the number of fermion-pair states making up the coboson at hand. At a higher density, the Pauli exclusion principle between fermionic constituents shows up dramatically. It induces (i) a decrease in the number-operator eigenvalues down to 1 and an increase in the number-state second-order correlation functions up to 2; (ii) the disappearance of the usual sharp peak in the coherent-state distribution and an increase in the coherent-state second-order correlation function up to 2. It also is possible to construct number states and coherent states for Wannier-like cobosons, but their forms are far more complex. Finally, we show that Pauli blocking makes the coboson coherent states qualitatively different from Anderson's ansatz.

Cold atomic gases resonantly excited to Rydberg states can exhibit strong optical nonlinearity at the single-photon level. We observe that in such samples radiation trapping leads to an additional mechanism for Rydberg excitation. Conversely we demonstrate that Rydberg excitation provides an in situ probe of the spectral, statistical, temporal, and spatial properties of the trapped rescattered light. We also show that absorption can lead to an excitation saturation that mimics the Rydberg blockade effect. Collective effects due to multiple scattering may coexist with cooperative effects due to long-range interactions between the Rydberg atoms, adding a new dimension to quantum optics experiments with cold Rydberg gases.

A bipartite state is said to be steerable if and only if it does not have a single-system description, i.e., the bipartite state cannot be explained by a local hidden state model. Several steering inequalities have been derived using different local uncertainty relations to verify the ability to control the state of one subsystem by the other party. Here, we derive complementarity relations between coherences measured on mutually unbiased bases using various coherence measures such as the $l_1$-norm, relative entropy, and skew information. Using these relations, we derive conditions under which a nonlocal advantage of quantum coherence can be achieved and the state is steerable. We show that not all steerable states can achieve such an advantage.

We have experimentally investigated the quench dynamics of antiferromagnetic spinor Bose-Einstein condensates in the vicinity of a zero temperature quantum phase transition at zero quadratic Zeeman shift $q$. The rate of instability shows good agreement with predictions based upon solutions to the Bogoliubov–de Gennes equations. A key feature of this work was removal of magnetic field inhomogeneities, resulting in a steep change in behavior near the transition point. The quadratic Zeeman shift at the transition point was resolved to 250 mHz uncertainty, equivalent to an energy resolution of $k_B\times$ (12 pK). A small (2–3 $\sigma$) shift of the transition point was observed, from $q=0$ to $q=+650$ mHz, whose physical mechanism is currently unknown. In this work, we demonstrate a sub-Hz precision measurement of a phase transition in quantum gases. It paves the way toward observing shifts of the transition point due to finite particle number $N$ that scale as $1/N$, and also to potential Heisenberg limited spectroscopy with antiferromagnetic spinor gases [L.-N. Wu and L. You, Phys. Rev. A 93, 033608 (2016)].

We develop an instantonic calculus to derive an analytical expression for the thermally assisted tunneling decay rate of a metastable state in a fully connected quantum spin model. The tunneling decay problem can be mapped onto the Kramers escape problem of a classical random dynamical field. This dynamical field is simulated efficiently by path-integral quantum Monte Carlo (QMC). We show analytically that the exponential scaling with the number of spins of the thermally assisted quantum tunneling rate and the escape rate of the QMC process are identical. We relate this effect to the existence of a dominant instantonic tunneling path. The instanton trajectory is described by nonlinear dynamical mean-field theory equations for a single-site magnetization vector, which we solve exactly. Finally, we derive scaling relations for the “spiky” barrier shape when the spin tunneling and QMC rates scale polynomially with the number of spins $N$ while a purely classical over-the-barrier activation rate scales exponentially with $N$.

We studied pure state transformations using local operations assisted by finitely many rounds of classical communication (${\text{LOCC}}_{IN}$) [C. Spee, J. I. de Vicente, D. Sauerwein, and B. Kraus [Phys. Rev. Lett. (to be published)], arXiv:1606.04418]. Here, we present the details of some of the proofs and generalize the construction of examples of state transformations via ${\text{LOCC}}_{IN}$ which require a probabilistic step. However, we also present explicit examples of SLOCC classes where any separable transformation can be realized by a protocol in which each step is deterministic (all-det-${\text{LOCC}}_{IN}$). Such transformations can be considered as natural generalizations of bipartite transformations. Furthermore, we provide examples of pure state transformations which are possible via separable transformations, but not via ${\text{LOCC}}_{IN}$. We also analyze an interesting genuinely multipartite effect which we call locking or unlocking the power of other parties. This means that one party can prevent or enable the implementation of LOCC transformations by other parties. Moreover, we investigate the maximally entangled set restricted to ${\text{LOCC}}_{IN}$ and show how easily computable bounds on some entanglement measures can be derived by restricting to ${\text{LOCC}}_{IN}$.