Phase-space mixing in dynamically unstable, integrable few-mode quantum systems

TitlePhase-space mixing in dynamically unstable, integrable few-mode quantum systems
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2017
AuthorsMathew, R, Tiesinga, E
JournalPhysical Review A
Volume96
Issue1
Pages013604
Date Published2017/07/05
Abstract

Quenches in isolated quantum systems are currently a subject of intense study. Here, we consider quantum few-mode systems that are integrable in their classical mean-field limit and become dynamically unstable after a quench of a system parameter. Specifically, we study a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) in a double-well potential and an antiferromagnetic spinor BEC constrained to a single spatial mode. We study the time dynamics after the quench within the truncated Wigner approximation (TWA) and find that system relaxes to a steady state due to phase-space mixing. Using the action-angle formalism and a pendulum as an illustration, we derive general analytical expressions for the time evolution of expectation values of observables and their long-time limits. We find that the deviation of the long-time expectation value from its classical value scales as 1/O(ln N), where N is the number of atoms in the condensate. Furthermore, the relaxation of an observable to its steady state value is a damped oscillation and the damping is Gaussian in time. We confirm our results with numerical TWA simulations.

URLhttps://arxiv.org/abs/1705.01702
DOI10.1103/PhysRevA.96.013604