Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 5, 2026
06:53
Scanning SQUID Study of Vortex Manipulation by Local Contact
Published on: February 1, 2017
Creating and manipulating vortices in atomic wave functions with short electric field pulses
S Yu Ovchinnikov1, J B Sternberg, J H Macek
1Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee 37496, USA.
Physical Review Letters
|January 15, 2011
Summary
Scientists created atomic-scale vortices using short electric field pulses. These vortex quasiparticles persist and can be observed, offering new insights into fluid dynamics and quantum phenomena.
Area of Science:
- Atomic physics
- Quantum mechanics
- Fluid dynamics
Background:
- Vortices are fundamental in fluid dynamics.
- Understanding quantum phenomena requires exploring particle behavior.
- Atomic-scale dynamics are typically studied through complex theoretical models.
Purpose of the Study:
- To demonstrate the creation and manipulation of vortices in atomic electronic probability density.
- To investigate the evolution and persistence of these atomic vortices.
- To explore the connection between quantum mechanics and fluid dynamics through vortex formation.
Main Methods:
- Subjecting atoms to short electric field pulses.
- Utilizing a hydrodynamic interpretation of the Schrödinger equation.
- Analyzing the spectrum of ejected electrons to observe vortex persistence.
Main Results:
- Successfully created vortices in atomic electronic probability density.
- Demonstrated manipulation of vortices by varying electric field pulses.
- Observed vortex persistence to macroscopic distances in ejected electron spectra.
- Showed spontaneous vortex appearance in compressible fluids via a hydrodynamic analogy.
Conclusions:
- Femtosecond laser pulses can create and manipulate atomic-scale vortex quasiparticles.
- The study bridges quantum mechanics and fluid dynamics, illustrating broader applicability to vortex formation.
- Atomic vortices offer a new avenue for laboratory observation and study.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
01:10Generating Electromagnetic Radiations
The German physicist Heinrich Hertz (1857–1894) was the first to generate and detect certain types of electromagnetic waves in the laboratory. Starting in 1887, he performed a series of experiments that confirmed the existence of electromagnetic waves and verified that they travel at the speed of light. Hertz used an alternating-current RLC (resistor-inductor-capacitor) circuit that resonated at a known frequency and connected it to a loop of wire. High voltages induced across the gap in the...
01:30Electromagnetic Waves
James Clerk Maxwell formulated a single theory combining all the electric and magnetic effects scientists knew during that time, calling the phenomena his theory predicted “Electromagnetic waves”. He brought together all the work that had been done by brilliant physicists such as Oersted, Coulomb, Gauss, and Faraday and added his own insights to develop the overarching theory of electromagnetism. Maxwell’s equations, combined with the Lorentz force law, encompass all the laws of electricity and...
01:28Standing Waves in a Cavity
A household microwave and lasers are examples of standing electromagnetic waves in a cavity. When two conducting metal plates are placed parallel at the nodal planes, it creates a cavity where standing waves are formed. The cavity between the two planes is analogous to a stretched string held at the points x = 0 and x = L. Here, the distance 'L' between the two planes must be an integer multiple of half of the wavelength. The wavelengths that satisfy this condition are given by:
01:27Induced Electric Fields: Applications
An important distinction exists between the electric field induced by a changing magnetic field and the electrostatic field produced by a fixed charge distribution. Specifically, the induced electric field is nonconservative because it does not work in moving a charge over a closed path. In contrast, the electrostatic field is conservative and does no net work over a closed path. Hence, electric potential can be associated with the electrostatic field but not the induced field. The following...
01:23Induced Electric Fields
The fact that emfs are induced in circuits implies that work is being done on the conduction electrons in the wires. What can possibly be the source of this work? We know that it’s neither a battery nor a magnetic field, as a battery does not have to be present in a circuit where current is induced, and magnetic fields never do any work on moving charges. The source of the work is in fact an electric field that is induced in the wires. For example, if a stationary conductor is placed in a...
01:30Electromagnetic Waves in Matter
Electromagnetic waves can travel in the vacuum as well as in matter. For example light, which is an electromagnetic wave, can travel through air, water, or glass.
Consider the electromagnetic wave passing through a dielectric medium. In such a case, Maxwell's equations get modified. In Ampere's law, ε0 , the dielectric permittivity of free space is replaced with ε, the permittivity of dielectric. Also, the vacuum permeability μ0 is replaced by the permeability of the medium, μ.
Furthermore, the...
Consider the electromagnetic wave passing through a dielectric medium. In such a case, Maxwell's equations get modified. In Ampere's law, ε0 , the dielectric permittivity of free space is replaced with ε, the permittivity of dielectric. Also, the vacuum permeability μ0 is replaced by the permeability of the medium, μ.
Furthermore, the...