We propose a protocol for the simultaneous controlled creation of multiple concentric ring dark solitons in a toroidally trapped Bose-Einstein condensate. The decay of these solitons into a vortex-antivortex necklace shows revivals of the soliton structure, but eventually becomes an example of quantum turbulence.

L. A. Toikka O. Kärki K. -A. Suominen

We show how boundary effects can cause a Bose-Einstein condensate to periodically oscillate between a (circular) array of quantised vortex-antivortex pairs and a (ring) dark soliton. If the boundary is restrictive enough, the ring dark soliton becomes long-lived.

L. A. Toikka K. -A. Suominen

We report Monte Carlo wave function simulation results on cold collisions between magnesium atoms in a strong red-detuned laser field. This is the normal situation e.g. in magneto-optical traps (MOT). The Doppler limit heating rate due to radiative collisions is calculated for Mg-24 atoms in a magneto-optical trap based on the singlet S_0 - singlet P_1 atomic laser cooling transition. We find that radiative heating does not seem to affect the Doppler limit in this case. We also describe a channelling mechanism due to the missing Q branch in the excitation scheme, which could lead to a suppression of inelastic collisions, and find that this mechanism is not present in our simulation results due to the multistate character of the excitation process.

J. Piilo E. Lundh K. -A. Suominen

We simulate collisions between two atoms, which move in an optical lattice under the dipole-dipole interaction. The model describes simultaneously the two basic dynamical processes, namely the Sisyphus cooling of single atoms, and the light-induced inelastic collisions between them. We consider the J=1/2 -> J=3/2 laser cooling transition for Cs, Rb and Na. We find that the hotter atoms in a thermal sample are selectively lost or heated by the collisions, which modifies the steady state distribution of atomic velocities, reminiscent of the evaporative cooling process.

J. Piilo K. -A. Suominen K. Berg-Sorensen

We report Monte Carlo wave function simulation results for two colliding atoms in a blue-detuned near-resonant $J=1\to J=1$ optical lattice. Our results show that complete optical shielding of collisions can be achieved within the lattice with suitably selected and realistic laser field parameters. More importantly, our results demonstrate that the shielding effect does not interfere with the actual trapping and cooling process, and it is produced by the lattice lasers themselves, without the need to use additional laser beams.

J. Piilo K. -A. Suominen

We have simulated binary collisions between atoms in optical lattices during Sisyphus cooling. Our Monte Carlo Wave Function simulations show that the collisions selectively accelerate mainly the hotter atoms in the thermal ensemble, and thus affect the steady state which one would normally expect to reach in Sisyphus cooling without collisions.

J. Piilo K. -A. Suominen K. Berg-Sorensen

We investigate the non-Markovian dynamics of two-state systems in structured reservoirs. We establish a connection between two theoretical quantum approaches, the pseudomodes [B. M. Garraway, Phys. Rev. A 55, 2290 (1997)] and the recently developed non-Markovian quantum jump method [J. Piilo et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 100, 180402 (2008)]. This connection provides a clear physical picture of how the structured reservoir affects the system dynamics, indicating the role of the pseudomodes as an effective description of the environmental memory.

L. Mazzola S. Maniscalco J. Piilo K. -A. Suominen B. Garraway

A microscopic derivation of the master equation for the Jaynes-Cummings model with cavity losses is given, taking into account the terms in the dissipator which vary with frequencies of the order of the vacuum Rabi frequency. Our approach allows to single out physical contexts wherein the usual phenomenological dissipator turns out to be fully justified and constitutes an extension of our previous analysis [Scala M. {\em et al.} 2007 Phys. Rev. A {\bf 75}, 013811], where a microscopic derivation was given in the framework of the Rotating Wave Approximation.

M. Scala B. Militello A. Messina S. Maniscalco J. Piilo K. -A. Suominen

We study the exact entanglement dynamics of two qubits interacting with a common zero-temperature non-Markovian reservoir. We consider the two qubits initially prepared in Bell-like states or extended Werner-like states. We study the dependence of the entanglement dynamics on both the degree of purity and the amount of entanglement of the initial state. We also explore the relation between the entanglement and the von Neumann entropy dynamics and find that these two quantities are correlated for initial Bell-like states.

L. Mazzola S. Maniscalco J. Piilo K. -A. Suominen

Our recent experimental work on electron spin waves in atomic hydrogen gas has prompted a revisit of the theory of the Identical Spin Rotation Effect (ISRE). A key characteristic determining the properties of the spin waves is the quality factor of ISRE. Unfortunately, calculating this quality factor takes some toil. In this paper we summarize some results of the ISRE theory in dilute gases. We also derive asymptotic formulae for the quality factor and examine their accuracy for hydrogen and $^3$He.

L. Lehtonen O. Vainio J. Ahokas J. Järvinen S. Sheludyakov K. -A. Suominen S. Vasiliev V. Khmelenko D. M. Lee