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Physical Society Colloquium
David Feder
Electron and Optical Physics Division Understanding the relationship between Bose-Einstein condensation (BEC) and superfluidity has been central to low temperature research over much of the past century. Yet a quantitative study of this important issue has only recently become possible with the experimental achievement of BEC in trapped atomic gases (for which the 2001 Nobel prize in physics was awarded). The superfluidity of these dilute, weakly interacting Bose gases has been strikingly confirmed by the observation of quantized vortices in condensates by several experimental groups. I will discuss issues involved in the formation, dynamics, and stability of vortex lines in these mesoscopic systems. I will describe current experimental efforts in this area, such as the possibility of forming a quantum Hall state that could in turn provide the basis for a quantum information device.
Monday, January 7th 2002, 15:30 |