Criticality in trapped atomic systems

We discuss generic limits posed by the trap in atomic systems on the accurate determination of critical parameters for second-order phase transitions, from which we deduce optimal protocols to extract them. We show that under current experimental conditions the in situ density profiles are barely su...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inPhysical review letters Vol. 104; no. 24; p. 245705
Main Authors Pollet, L, Prokof'ev, N V, Svistunov, B V
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States 18.06.2010
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Summary:We discuss generic limits posed by the trap in atomic systems on the accurate determination of critical parameters for second-order phase transitions, from which we deduce optimal protocols to extract them. We show that under current experimental conditions the in situ density profiles are barely suitable for an accurate study of critical points in the strongly correlated regime. Contrary to recent claims, the proper analysis of time-of-fight images yields critical parameters accurately.
ISSN:1079-7114
DOI:10.1103/PhysRevLett.104.245705