Dissipation-induced symmetry breaking in a driven optical lattice

Area of Science:

• Atomic physics
• Quantum dynamics
• Condensed matter physics

Background:

• Periodic optical potentials are crucial for controlling atom dynamics.
• Symmetry in physical systems often dictates their behavior.
• Understanding symmetry breaking is key to controlling quantum systems.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate atomic dynamics in a time- and space-symmetric ac-driven optical potential.
• To experimentally explore the role of dissipation in symmetry breaking.
• To demonstrate the generation of atomic current due to broken symmetry.

Main Methods:

• Experimental setup involving an ac-driven periodic optical potential.
• Controlled introduction of dissipation into the system.
• Observation and measurement of atomic dynamics and current generation.

Main Results:

• The system initially exhibits time- and space-symmetric atomic dynamics.
• Dissipation was experimentally introduced, leading to symmetry breaking.
• A directed current of atoms was observed flowing through the optical lattice.

Conclusions:

• Dissipation is shown to break the inherent symmetry of the driven optical potential.
• The broken symmetry directly leads to the generation of a net atomic current.
• This work provides insights into controlling atomic transport in optical lattices.