We investigate the structure and stability of Bose-Einstein condensate of $^{7}$Li atoms with realistic van der Waals interaction by using the potential harmonic expansion method. Besides the known low-density metastable solution with contact delta function interaction, we find a stable branch at a higher density which corresponds to the formation of an atomic cluster. Comparison with the results of non-local effective interaction is also presented. We analyze the effect of trap size on the transition between the two branches of solutions. We also compute the loss rate of a Bose condensate due to two- and three-body collisions.
Dipolar relaxation happens when one or both colliding atoms flip their spins exothermically inside a magnetic ($B$) field. This work reports precise measurements of dipolar relaxation in a Bose-Einstein condensate of ground state $^{87}$Rb atoms together with in-depth theoretical investigations. Previous perturbative treatments fail to explain our observations except at very small $B$-fields. By employing quantum defect theory based on analytic solutions of asymptotic van der Waals interaction $-C_6/R^6$ ($R$ being interatomic spacing), we significantly expand the applicable range of perturbative treatment. We find the $B$-dependent dipolar relaxation lineshapes are largely universal, determined by the coefficient $C_6$ and the associated $s$-wave scattering lengths $a_{rm sc}$ of the states before and after spin flips. This universality, which applies generally to other atomic species as well, implicates potential controls of dipolar relaxation and related cold chemical reactions by tuning $a_{rm sc}$.
We consider thermodynamics of the van der Waals fluid of quantum systems. We derive general relations of thermodynamic functions and parameters of any ideal gas and the corresponding van der Waals fluid. This provides unambiguous generalization of the classical van der Waals theory to quantum statistical systems. As an example, we apply the van der Waals fluid with fermi statistics to characterize the liquid-gas critical point in nuclear matter. We also introduce the Bose-Einstein condensation in the relativistic van der Waals boson gas, and argue, that it exhibits two-phase structure separated in space.
The universal aspects of atom-dimer elastic collisions are investigated within the framework of Faddeev equations. The two-body interactions between the neutral atoms are approximated by the separable potential approach. Our analysis considers a pure van der Waals potential tail as well as soft-core van der Waals interactions permitting us in this manner to address the universally general features of atom-dimer resonant spectra. In particular, we show that the atom-dimer resonances are solely associated with the {it excited} Efimov states. Furthermore, the positions of the corresponding resonances for a soft-core potentials with more than 5 bound states are in good agreement with the corresponding results from an infinitely deep pure van der Waals tail potential.
Recent research showed that the rotational degree of freedom in stacking 2D materials yields great changes in the electronic properties. Here we focus on an often overlooked question: are twisted geometries stable and what defines their rotational energy landscape? Our simulations show how epitaxy theory breaks down in these systems and we explain the observed behaviour in terms of an interplay between flexural phonons and the interlayer coupling, governed by Moire superlattice. Our argument applied to the well-studied MoS$_2$/Graphene system rationalize experimental results and could serve as guidance to design twistronics devices.
Even if individual two-dimensional materials own various interesting and unexpected properties, the stacking of such layers leads to van der Waals solids which unite the characteristics of two dimensions with novel features originating from the interlayer interactions. In this topical review, we cover fabrication and characterization of van der Waals heterosructures with a focus on heterobilayers made of monolayers of semiconducting transition metal dichalcogenides. Experimental and theoretical techniques to investigate those heterobilayers are introduced. Most recent findings focusing on different transition metal dichalcogenides heterostructures are presented and possible optical transitions between different valleys, appearance of moire patterns and signatures of moire excitons are discussed. The fascinating and fast growing research on van der Waals hetero-bilayers provide promising insights required for their application as emerging quantum-nano materials.