Homogeneous quantum gases: strongly interacting fermions and rotating bosonic condensates

Quantum gases are an ideal platform for studying problems in many-body physics. Highly tunable and reconfigurable, these systems work as quantum simulators for a range of other quantum mechanical systems, ranging from neutron stars, to superconductors, to quantum Hall systems. A crucial degree of freedom is the external geometry of the trapping potential. In this thesis, we describe experiments on creating homogeneous quantum gases and performing measurements using them. The first section of the thesis focuses on homogeneous Fermi gases, where we use tailored optical potentials to trap 6Li atoms in a homogeneous box potential. We observe uniform fermionic superfluids and measure the temperature dependence of the noninteracting Fermi surface. Radiofrequency (rf) spectroscopy offers unique insights into the spectral properties of Fermi gases. We exploit the high signal to noise ratio of rf spectroscopy of uniform Fermi gases to obtain precise measurements of the thermodynamic contact. We observe a dramatic change in the contact at the superfluid transition. The second section of this thesis concerns uniform rotating bosonic condensates. We discuss a new experimental apparatus and outline how geometric squeezing can be used to prepare systems of quantum gases in the lowest Landau level, a long sought-after goal. Lastly, we show a surprising spontaneous crystallization of these quantum Hall systems, and find that it is driven by interactions.

Name thesis:degree_name

Doctoral

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Physics

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2022

Author dc:creator

• Mukherjee, Biswaroop

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Zwierlein, Martin W.

Statement dc:rights

• In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
• Copyright MIT

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC-EDU/1.0/

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/143224

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/143224