Abstract
We present a new technique for producing two- and three-dimensional Rashba-type spin-orbit couplings for ultracold atoms without involving light. The method relies on a sequence of pulsed inhomogeneous magnetic fields imprinting suitable phase gradients on the atoms. For sufficiently short pulse durations, the time-averaged Hamiltonian well approximates the Rashba Hamiltonian. Higher order corrections to the energy spectrum are calculated exactly for spin- and perturbatively for higher spins. The pulse sequence does not modify the form of rotationally symmetric atom-atom interactions. Finally, we present a straightforward implementation of this pulse sequence on an atom chip.
- Received 13 June 2013
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.111.125301
This article is available under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article’s title, journal citation, and DOI.
Published by the American Physical Society