220 research outputs found
Towards fabrication of ordered gallium nanostructures by laser manipulation of neutral atoms: study of self-assembling phenomena
Surface diffusion has an impact on the lateral resolution of nanostructures
in bottom-up atom nanofabrication. In this paper we study the effects of the
gallium atoms self-assembled on silicon surfaces (100) patterned with trenches
at different slopes. These particular substrate morphologies have been made to
enable an effective deposition rate variation along the surface. In this way we
experimentally mimic the effect of the atomic flux modulation created by
standing wave during an atom nanofabrication experiment. Even if we observe
self organization of gallium atoms on the surface, we conclude that the
nano-islands are not affected by surface diffusion processes and the effective
variation of the deposition rate per unit area is the dominant factor affecting
the growth differences along the surface. This result demonstrates that the
gallium atoms self-organization should not prevent the observation of a
periodic nano-patterning created by atom nano-fabrication techniques.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures, EMRS conference procee
Finite temperature theory of the scissors mode in a Bose gas using the moment method
We use a generalized Gross-Pitaevskii equation for the condensate and a
semi-classical kinetic equation for the noncondensate atoms to discuss the
scissors mode in a trapped Bose-condensed gas at finite temperatures. Both
equations include the effect of collisions between the condensate and
noncondensate atoms. We solve the coupled moment equations describing
oscillations of the quadrupole moments of the condensate and noncondensate
components to find the collective mode frequencies and collisional damping
rates as a function of temperature. Our calculations extend those of
Gu\'ery-Odelin and Stringari at T=0 and in the normal phase. They complement
the numerical results of Jackson and Zaremba, although Landau damping is left
out of our approach. Our results are also used to calculate the quadrupole
response function, which is related to the moment of inertia. It is shown
explicitly that the moment of inertia of a trapped Bose gas at finite
temperatures involves a sum of an irrotational component from the condensate
and a rotational component from the thermal cloud atoms.Comment: 18 pages, 8 figure
The Moment of Inertia and the Scissors Mode of a Bose-condensed Gas
We relate the frequency of the scissors mode to the moment of inertia of a
trapped Bose gas at finite temperature in a semi-classical approximation. We
apply these theoretical results to the data obtained in our previous study of
the properties of the scissors mode of a trapped Bose-Einstein condensate of
Rb atoms as a function of the temperature. The frequency shifts that we
measured show quenching of the moment of inertia of the Bose gas at
temperatures below the transition temperature - the system has a lower moment
of inertia that of a rigid body with the same mass distribution, because of
superfluidity.Comment: 14 pages, 5 fig
Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy in 3D electrospun nanofiber mats coated with gold nanorods
Nanofibers functionalized by metal nanostructures and particles are exploited
as effective flexible substrates for SERS analysis. Their complex
three-dimensional structure may provide Raman signals enhanced by orders of
magnitude compared to untextured surfaces. Understanding the origin of such
improved performances is therefore very important for pushing nanofiber-based
analytical technologies to their upper limit. Here we report on polymer
nanofiber mats which can be exploited as substrates for enhancing the Raman
spectra of adsorbed probe molecules. The increased surface area and the
scattering of light in the nanofibrous system are individually analyzed as
mechanisms to enhance Raman scattering. The deposition of gold nanorods on the
fibers further amplifies Raman signals due to SERS. This study suggests that
Raman signals can be finely tuned in intensity and effectively enhanced in
nanofiber mats and arrays by properly tailoring the architecture, composition,
and light-scattering properties of the complex networks of filaments.Comment: 29 pages, 9 figures, 1 Tabl
Beyond the Landau Criterion for Superfluidity
According to the Landau criterion for superfluidity, a Bose-Einstein
condensate flowing with a group velocity smaller than the sound velocity is
energetically stable to the presence of perturbing potentials. We found that
this is strictly correct only for vanishingly small perturbations. The
superfluid critical velocity strongly depends on the strength and shape of the
defect. We quantitatively study, both numerically and with an approximate
analytical model, the dynamical response of a one-dimensional condensate
flowing against an istantaneously raised spatially periodic defect. We found
that the critical velocity decreases by incresing the strength of the
defect , up to to a critical value of the defect intensity where the
critical velocity vanishes
Modelling red blood cell optical trapping by machine learning improved geometrical optics calculations
Optically trapping red blood cells allows for the exploration of their biophysical properties, which are affected in many diseases. However, because of their nonspherical shape, the numerical calculation of the optical forces is slow, limiting the range of situations that can be explored. Here we train a neural network that improves both the accuracy and the speed of the calculation and we employ it to simulate the motion of a red blood cell under different beam configurations. We found that by fixing two beams and controlling the position of a third, it is possible to control the tilting of the cell. We anticipate this work to be a promising approach to study the trapping of complex shaped and inhomogeneous biological materials, where the possible photodamage imposes restrictions in the beam power
Enhancement of the scissors mode of an expanding Bose-Einstein condensate
We study the time-evolution of the scissors mode of a Bose-Einstein
condensate during the ballistic expansion after release from the magnetic trap.
We show that despite the nontrivial character of the superfluid expansion, the
sinusoidal behavior of the scissor oscillations is recovered after an
asymptotic expansion, with an enhancement of the final amplitude. We
investigate this phenomenon with a condensate held in an elongated
magnetostatic potential, whose particular shape allows for the excitation of
the scissors mode.Comment: RevTeX, 5 figure
Finite-temperature simulations of the scissors mode in Bose-Einstein condensed gases
The dynamics of a trapped Bose-condensed gas at finite temperatures is
described by a generalized Gross-Pitaevskii equation for the condensate order
parameter and a semi-classical kinetic equation for the thermal cloud, solved
using -body simulations. The two components are coupled by mean fields as
well as collisional processes that transfer atoms between the two. We use this
scheme to investigate scissors modes in anisotropic traps as a function of
temperature. Frequency shifts and damping rates of the condensate mode are
extracted, and are found to be in good agreement with recent experiments.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
Vortex nucleation in Bose-Einstein condensates in an oblate, purely magnetic potential
We have investigated the formation of vortices by rotating the purely
magnetic potential confining a Bose-Einstein condensate. We modified the bias
field of an axially symmetric TOP trap to create an elliptical potential that
rotates in the radial plane. This enabled us to study the conditions for vortex
nucleation over a wide range of eccentricities and rotation rates.Comment: 4 pages 4 figure
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