Universal Quantum Dynamics of Bose Polarons

Predicting the emergent properties of impurities immersed in a quantum bath is a fundamental challenge that can defy quasiparticle treatments. Here, we measure the spectral properties and real-time dynamics of mobile impurities injected into a weakly interacting homogeneous Bose-Einstein condensate,...

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Main Authors: Jiří Etrych, Gevorg Martirosyan, Alec Cao, Christopher J. Ho, Zoran Hadzibabic, Christoph Eigen
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: American Physical Society 2025-05-01
Series:Physical Review X
Online Access:http://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevX.15.021070
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author Jiří Etrych
Gevorg Martirosyan
Alec Cao
Christopher J. Ho
Zoran Hadzibabic
Christoph Eigen
author_facet Jiří Etrych
Gevorg Martirosyan
Alec Cao
Christopher J. Ho
Zoran Hadzibabic
Christoph Eigen
author_sort Jiří Etrych
collection DOAJ
description Predicting the emergent properties of impurities immersed in a quantum bath is a fundamental challenge that can defy quasiparticle treatments. Here, we measure the spectral properties and real-time dynamics of mobile impurities injected into a weakly interacting homogeneous Bose-Einstein condensate, using two broad Feshbach resonances to tune both the impurity-bath and intrabath interactions. For attractive impurity-bath interactions, the impurity spectrum features a single branch, which away from the resonance corresponds to a well-defined attractive polaron; near the resonance, we observe dramatic broadening of this branch, suggesting a breakdown of the quasiparticle picture. For repulsive impurity-bath interactions, the spectrum features two branches: the attractive branch that is dominated by excitations with energy close to that of the Feshbach dimer, but has a many-body character, and the repulsive polaron branch. Our measurements show that the behavior of impurities in weakly interacting baths is remarkably universal, controlled only by the bath density and a single dimensionless interaction parameter.
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spelling doaj-art-f4bd90c46d95440ea5a96e98fc89eef62025-08-20T03:05:27ZengAmerican Physical SocietyPhysical Review X2160-33082025-05-0115202107010.1103/PhysRevX.15.021070Universal Quantum Dynamics of Bose PolaronsJiří EtrychGevorg MartirosyanAlec CaoChristopher J. HoZoran HadzibabicChristoph EigenPredicting the emergent properties of impurities immersed in a quantum bath is a fundamental challenge that can defy quasiparticle treatments. Here, we measure the spectral properties and real-time dynamics of mobile impurities injected into a weakly interacting homogeneous Bose-Einstein condensate, using two broad Feshbach resonances to tune both the impurity-bath and intrabath interactions. For attractive impurity-bath interactions, the impurity spectrum features a single branch, which away from the resonance corresponds to a well-defined attractive polaron; near the resonance, we observe dramatic broadening of this branch, suggesting a breakdown of the quasiparticle picture. For repulsive impurity-bath interactions, the spectrum features two branches: the attractive branch that is dominated by excitations with energy close to that of the Feshbach dimer, but has a many-body character, and the repulsive polaron branch. Our measurements show that the behavior of impurities in weakly interacting baths is remarkably universal, controlled only by the bath density and a single dimensionless interaction parameter.http://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevX.15.021070
spellingShingle Jiří Etrych
Gevorg Martirosyan
Alec Cao
Christopher J. Ho
Zoran Hadzibabic
Christoph Eigen
Universal Quantum Dynamics of Bose Polarons
Physical Review X
title Universal Quantum Dynamics of Bose Polarons
title_full Universal Quantum Dynamics of Bose Polarons
title_fullStr Universal Quantum Dynamics of Bose Polarons
title_full_unstemmed Universal Quantum Dynamics of Bose Polarons
title_short Universal Quantum Dynamics of Bose Polarons
title_sort universal quantum dynamics of bose polarons
url http://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevX.15.021070
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