CAREER: Few-Body Universality Study Using Ultracold Atoms in Optical Lattices

该职业奖旨在识别和探索具有特定数量超冷原子的量子系统的普遍性。 当系统的物理性质仅取决于一个称为两体散射长度的单一参数时，“普适”行为发生在低温下。 普适性的含义可以在两体和多体极限中理解，例如两原子碰撞中的能量位移和截面以及玻色-爱因斯坦凝聚的平均场能量。 该项目的目标是回答在少体系统中普遍性如何持续的问题，并将两体和多体系统的物理学联系起来。 实验将用玻色子（Cs）和费米子（Li）从量子简并气体加载到二维光学晶格中进行。 光学晶格将是通过交叉五个激光束形成的二维晶格位点的薄层。 该项目将通过探测光学晶格中原子量子叠加的演化，使用一种新的干涉检测两体和三体相互作用。由于这些实验的普遍性，它们将为研究核物理、凝聚态物理和物理化学中的基本问题提供前所未有的试验场。该项目还包括一个强有力的教育部分，以培训研究人员，并为本科生和高中生提供研究项目。 该项目还将通过PI科学数学和研究培训（SMART）计划支持PI与最近在芝加哥创建的Woodlawn高中的互动，以加强课程并激发对科学和数学的兴趣。

This CAREER award aims to identify and explore the universality of quantum systems with a specific number of ultracold atoms. "Universal" behavior occurs at low temperatures when the physical properties of a system depend only on a single parameter, called the two-body scattering length. The implications of universality are understood in the two-body and many-body limits where they describe, for example energy shifts and cross sections in two-atom collisions and the mean-field energy of a Bose-Einstein condensate. The goal of this project is answering the question of how universality persists in few-body systems and link the physics of two- and many-body systems. The experiments will be performed with Bosons (Cs) and Fermions (Li) loaded into two-dimensional optical lattices from quantum degenerate gases. The optical lattice will be a thin layer of two-dimensional lattice sites formed by intersecting five laser beams. The project will use a novel interferometric detection of two- and three-body interactions by probing the evolution of quantum superpositions of atoms in the optical lattice sites.Because of universality these experiments will provide an unprecedented testing ground to investigate fundamental issues in nuclear, condensed matter physics and in physical chemistry. The project also includes a strong education component to train research personnel, and provide research projects for undergraduate and high school students. The project will also support interaction of the PI with the recently created Woodlawn High School in Chicago through the PIs Science Mathematics and Research Training (SMART) program to strengthen the curriculum and motivate interest in science and mathematics.