Landau versus Spin Superfluidity in Spinor Bose-Einstein Condensates

We consider a spin-1/2 Bose-Einstein condensate prepared initially in a single spin projection. The two channels of excitations existing in such a system (namely density and spin waves) are discussed and we show how pure spin waves can be excited in the presence of local magnetic defects. We analyze the role played by spin excitations on the Landau superfluidity criterion and demonstrate the absence of absolute superfluidity for the antiferromagnetic condensate. In the ferromagnetic case, we identify two critical velocities for the breakdown of superfluidity.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure

Non-Abelian Gauge Fields in Photonic Cavities and Photonic Superfluids

We show that the interplay between the structure anisotropy and the energy splitting between the TE and TM modes of a microcavity leads to the appearance of a gauge field for a propagating polariton condensate. This field is analog with a spin-orbit coupling and the field texture can be tuned by rotating the sample and ranges continuously from a Rashba to a monopolar field. In the linear regime, the monopolar field leads to a remarkable focusing effect. In the interacting regime, the effective spin-orbit coupling induces a breakdown of superfluidity. The spatially homogeneous flows become unstable and dynamically evolve into textured ground states such as stripes and domain walls.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures (Phys. Rev. Lett., in press

Gauge Transformations in Quantum Mechanics and the Unification of Nonlinear Schr\"odinger Equations

Beginning with ordinary quantum mechanics for spinless particles, together with the hypothesis that all experimental measurements consist of positional measurements at different times, we characterize directly a class of nonlinear quantum theories physically equivalent to linear quantum mechanics through nonlinear gauge transformations. We show that under two physically-motivated assumptions, these transformations are uniquely determined: they are exactly the group of time-dependent, nonlinear gauge transformations introduced previously for a family of nonlinear Schr\"odinger equations. The general equation in this family, including terms considered by Kostin, by Bialynicki-Birula and Mycielski, and by Doebner and Goldin, with time-dependent coefficients, can be obtained from the linear Schr\"odinger equation through gauge transformation and a subsequent process we call gauge generalization. We thus unify, on fundamental grounds, a rather diverse set of nonlinear time-evolutions in quantum mechanics.Comment: RevTeX, 20 pages, no figures. also available on http://www.pt.tu-clausthal.de/preprints/asi-tpa/021-96.htm

On the Reconstructed Fermi Surface in the Underdoped Cuprates

The Fermi surface topologies of underdoped samples the high-Tc superconductor Bi2212 have been measured with angle resolved photoemission. By examining thermally excited states above the Fermi level, we show that the Fermi surfaces in the pseudogap phase of underdoped samples are actually composed of fully enclosed hole pockets. The spectral weight of these pockets is vanishingly small at the anti-ferromagnetic zone boundary, which creates the illusion of Fermi "arcs" in standard photoemission measurements. The area of the pockets as measured in this study is consistent with the doping level, and hence carrier density, of the samples measured. Furthermore, the shape and area of the pockets is well reproduced by a phenomenological model of the pseudogap phase as a spin liquid.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures. Submitted to Physics Review Letter

The Faraday effect revisited: Thermodynamic limit

This paper is the second in a series revisiting the (effect of) Faraday rotation. We formulate and prove the thermodynamic limit for the transverse electric conductivity of Bloch electrons, as well as for the Verdet constant. The main mathematical tool is a regularized magnetic and geometric perturbation theory combined with elliptic regularity and Agmon-Combes-Thomas uniform exponential decay estimates.Comment: 35 pages, accepted for publication in Journal of Functional Analysi