PHYSICAL REVIEW A 79, 043628 共2009兲

Decoherence in the collision of two Bose-Einstein condensates

Krzysztof Pawłowski1 and Kazimierz Rzążewski1,2

1
Center for Theoretical Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Al. Lotników 32/46, 02-668 Warsaw, Poland
2
Faculty of Mathematics and Sciences, Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University, ul. Dewajtis 5, 01-815 Warsaw, Poland
共Received 11 December 2008; revised manuscript received 6 March 2009; published 27 April 2009兲
Decoherence in simple experiments with Bose-Einstein condensates is of great importance for quantum
engineering. We study a system of two colliding condensates in Fock and correlated states. During the collision
some atoms are scattered out of the condensates, which leads to the decoherence. The quantum dynamics of the
condensates is described by a master equation. In a simplified model we present analytical results. For more
realistic conditions numerics is invoked. The depletion of the colliding condensates is accompanied by a
decoherence.

DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevA.79.043628 PACS number共s兲: 03.75.Gg, 03.75.Kk, 67.85.De

I. INTRODUCTION phenomenon with the reversible above-mentioned dephas-

There is a growing number of experiments on Bose-
Einstein condensates 共BECs兲 in which complex dynamical
processes are observed. They include creation of dark 关1,2兴
and bright solitons 关3,4兴, singly and multiply charged vorti-
ces 关5–8兴, Bragg splittings, and a four-wave mixing 关9,10兴
and many others. Of particular interest here is a collision of
two condensates 关10–12兴. During such a collision some at-
oms of two colliding clouds scatter out of the condensates,
forming a nearly spherically symmetric halo. If the collision
results from the splitting of a single condensate containing N
atoms, then the resulting two droplets of matter wave are in
an entangled state:
N
兩⌿典 = 兺 cn兩n,N − n典.
n=0
ing. Our paper is devoted to a study of this decoherence.
Using the well-known techniques of the theory of open quan-
tum systems, we trace over the degrees of freedom of scat-
tered atoms and derive a master equation for the reduced
density matrix of the condensate subsystem. The equation is
then solved numerically for a limited number of atoms. We
also give approximate analytic model that reproduces reason-
ably well the numerical results and derive the scaling rules.
The paper is organized as follows. In Sec. II we present a
model of the colliding condensates. The derivation of the
crucial master equation has been relegated to the Appendix.
In Sec. III we discuss the extinction of population of the
condensates due to the scattering losses. In Sec. IV the re-
sults for the first- and the second-order correlation functions
are presented and some conclusions are drown in Sec. V.

While n atoms are in one condensate, N − n atoms are in the

other condensate. Hence, each given number of atoms com-
ponent acquires its own linear growth with time phase result-
ing from the corresponding number-dependent chemical po-
tential. Since the chemical potential is a nonlinear function
of a number of atoms, the ability of two droplets to interfere,
measured by the lowest-order correlation function, decreases
in time. But this dephasing is reversible since we have an
interference of fields with a discrete set of frequencies. Such
II. MODEL
Our system consists of two counterpropagating Bose-
Einstein condensates, which are called in this paper the “left”
and the “right” condensates. They are created using Bragg
scattering from a single condensate, so initially both packets
are in the same place and are correlated. Thus a reasonable
representation of the initial state is given by

冑
a dephasing is followed by the revival of the coherence. The
celebrated example of the dephasing 共called collapse in the 1
兩␺共t = 0兲典 = 共␣ⴱ↠+ ␣ⴱ2â†2兲N兩0典, 共1兲
literature兲 followed by the revival of coherence is provided 2NN! 1 1
by the theoretically predicted 关13兴 and then observed 关14兴
long-time resonant interaction of an atom with a coherent where 兩␣1兩2 + 兩␣2兩2 = 1 and operators â†1 and â†2 create atoms in
state of a single mode of electromagnetic field in the cavity. the left and right condensates, respectively.
This old case of revival was hard to observe because of irre- During the evolution some condensed atoms collide with
versible cavity losses. This is a typical situation. Also in the each other and scatter out to the initially empty environment.
collision of the condensates there are losses due to the elastic The details of this process can be easily investigated in the
scattering away of atoms of two condensates. Properties of second quantization formalism. We consider the field opera-
the scattered atoms were extensively studied in a number of tor in the following form:
papers 关15–20兴. Perhaps the most comprehensive study of
this process was recently offered in 关19兴. The atoms are pro-
duced in pairs so they not only display a bunching charac- ⌿̂共r,t兲 = ␾−共r,t兲â1 + ␾+共r,t兲â2 共2兲
teristic of bosons but also an enhanced correlation of atoms
ejected in opposite directions 关18兴. Very little was said so far
1
冑V 兺
˙ı关qr−␻共q兲t兴
on the loss of coherence of colliding condensates, which is + e ĉq , 共3兲
due to the losses and the competition of this decoherence q

1050-2947/2009/79共4兲/043628共8兲 043628-1 ©2009 The American Physical Society

KRZYSZTOF PAWŁOWSKI AND KAZIMIERZ RZĄŻEWSKI PHYSICAL REVIEW A 79, 043628 共2009兲

where ␻共q兲 = បq2 / 2m , q is the length of a wave vector of a

scattered atom, ĉq and ĉ†q are an annihilation and a creation
operator for an atom scattered with the wave vector q, re-
g
2V
冕 ˙ ˙
d3reı关␻共q兲t−qr兴eı关␻共k兲t−kr兴␾+␾−ĉ†qĉ†kâ1â2 ¬
␭q,k共t兲 † †
4
ĉqĉkâ1â2 .

spectively, V is the quantization volume, and ␾−共r , t兲 and Due to the Gaussian shape of the condensates we take into
␾+共r , t兲 denote the wave functions of the left and the right account also the scattering in momentum modes 兩q兩 ⫽ 兩Q兩.
condensates, respectively. We assume a Gaussian shape of 共d兲 The terms which express a collision of two scattered
both condensates. atoms:

冕
We consider only short time scales so a free evolution of
the Gaussian condensate, following 关20兴, may be written in
兺
˙ ˙
d 3r e−ı关␻共q1兲+␻共q2兲−␻共q3兲−␻共q4兲兴teı共q1+q2−q3−q4兲rĉq† ĉq† ĉq1ĉq2 .
the form q1,q2
3 4

冉 冊
q3,q4

␾⫾共r,t兲 = 冑 ␲ ␴
1
3/2 3 exp ⫾ı̇Qx1 −
ı̇បtQ
2m
2
This phenomenon occurs very rarely, so these terms will be
neglected.

冉 冊
共e兲 The terms which express knocking out of an atom

冤 冥
បQt 2 2 2
x1 ⫿ + x2 + x3 from the condensed phase as a result of a collision with a
m scattered atom with wave vector q:
⫻exp − . 共4兲

冕
2␴2
兺
˙ ˙
d 3r e−ı关␻共q兲−␻共q1兲−␻共q2兲兴teı共q−q1−q2兲r␾+ĉq† ĉq† ĉqâ1 ,
1 2
Both condensates move along the x axis, but their momenta q,q ,q1 2
have opposite signs. Here Q is the length of the wave vector
where q1 and q2 are momenta of the products of this colli-
of each condensate, m is a mass of every atom, and ␴ is an
sion.
average Thomas-Fermi radius of the left and right conden-
There are experiments in which these processes lead to a
sates. In calculations below we use parameters from experi-
collisional avalanche 关21兴. This situation happens at a very
mental works in 关10,11兴, where sodium condensates were
high atomic density or in the presence of strong interactions.
used.
Here we consider experiments in which these terms may be
The free evolution is included in formula 共3兲 so the
neglected:
Hamiltonian has a short form
共a兲 We have also neglected all terms which do not con-

冕
serve momentum.
g After these simplifications the Hamiltonian takes the form
Ĥ = d3r⌿̂†⌿̂†⌿̂⌿̂, 共5兲
2
Ĥ = ĤA + ĤAE , 共6兲
g = 4␲mប a
2
where and a is the s-wave scattering length. where
After substitution of Eq. 共3兲 into Eq. 共5兲 the Hamiltonian
共b兲 ĤA describes the energy of interaction between atoms
becomes a sum of the following terms.
in the condensates,
共a兲 The energy of interaction between atoms in the left
condensate: ĤA = ប␣共兩␣1兩4â†1â†1â1â1 + 兩␣2兩4â†2â†2â2â2兲

g
2
冕 d3r␾+ⴱ ␾+ⴱ ␾+␾+â†1â†1â1â1 =
g
â†â†â1â1
2共2␲兲3/2␴3 1 1
+ ប␤兩␣1␣2兩2â†1â1â†2â2 .

共c兲 ĤAE is the coupling between the condensates and the

¬ ប␣â†1â†1â1â1 . initially empty momentum modes,

The energy of interaction in the right condensate is analo- ĤAE = 兺 ␭q,k␣1␣2â1â2ĉ†qĉ†k + H.c.
q,k
gous.
共b兲 The energy of interaction between atoms from differ- Note that the decoherence is caused by the ĤAE only as all
ent condensates: other terms do not change the number of atoms in the con-
densates.
g
2
冕 d3r␾+ⴱ ␾−ⴱ ␾+␾−â†1â1â†2â2
III. RATE OF DECAY OF THE NUMBER OF PARTICLES
g −共2/␴2兲共បQt2/m兲 †
= 3/2 3 e â1â1â†2â2 Most theoretical papers devoted to the dynamical problem
2共2␲兲 ␴ studied here were focused on the properties of scattered at-
ប␤ † † oms. To complement these papers we concentrate here on the
¬ â â1â â2 . fate of the condensates themselves. Our tool is a master
4 1 2
equation for the reduced density matrix of condensed atoms.
共c兲 The terms which express the elastic scattering of two Its derivation follows the scheme described, for instance, in
condensed atoms: 关22兴. We base our derivation on the experimental data from

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关10兴. Thus, for our calculation we consider BEC formed

average number of particles in one drop

100
from 3 ⫻ 107 ultracold 23Na atoms, which is dividing using correlated state
Bragg pulse into two droplets moving freely with the relative 80
correlated state, simplified model
fock state, simplified model
velocity 2vQ = 19.64 mm/ s. We assume for simplicity a
spherical symmetry of the condensates, with the spatial ra- 60
dius of BEC equal to 60 ␮m 共after averaging the Thomas-
Fermi radii given in 关10兴兲. Our approximations are also valid 40
for other experiments, for example, 关12,23兴. The details of
the derivation are given in the Appendix. The result is the 20
equation below, which is the main tool of this paper:
0
d␳ˆ BEC ı̇ 0 0.5 1 1.5 2
= − 关ĤA, ␳ˆ BEC兴 + 关␭ˆ âb̂␳ˆ BEC,â†b̂†兴 + 关âb̂, ␳ˆ BECâ†b̂†␭ˆ †兴, t (s)
dt ប
共7兲 FIG. 1. 共Color online兲 Average number of particles as a function
of time t for different initial states, with and without term ĤA from
where 关according to Eq. 共A5兲兴 the Hamiltonian.

␭ˆ 共t兲 = Ae−␰t
2
冑 1
2
冋 冉 冊册
␻0 − ␬ˆ 1 + Erf
␻0 − 21 ␬ˆ
冑␰ , 共8兲
␳k,l ª 冓 N
2
N
− k − l, + k − l ␳ˆ BEC
2
N
2
冏 冏 N
− k − l, + k − l ,
2
冔
A = 1 ប32␴3␲3 冑 mប , 1 / 冑␰ = ␴បQm is the characteristic time of
兩␣ ␣ 兩2mg2冑␲
where k varies between − N2 and N2 , and l is an integer from
overlapping of the two condensates, ប␻0 is the average ki- the interval 关0 , min兵 N2 − k , N2 + k其兴. Then the equations for the
netic energy of an atom in the condensate, and ␬ˆ = 关共␣ diagonal terms of ␳ˆ BEC have the form

冉 冊冉 冊
+ ␤兲N̂ − ␤兴 is an operator characterizing interaction inside the
d␳k,l N N
condensates, depending linearly on the number of condensed = 2␭ −k−l+1 + k − l + 1 ␳k,l−1
atoms. dt 2 2
First, we calculate the average number of particles which
remain in the condensates. It is quite complicated to deal
with the general initial state given by Eq. 共1兲, so we only
− 2␭ 冉 N
2
−k−l 冊冉 N
2
冊
+ k − l ␳k,l . 共10兲

looked at the evolution of a special case, ␣ = ␣ = 1 . Here, ␭ˆ

1 2 2
One can separate this set into 共2N + 1兲 closed sets of equa-
is an operator, depending on the number operator N̂, which tions. Due to initial state 共1兲 the kth set consists of coeffi-
makes our master equation difficult. We consider also a sim- cients of the form ␳k,l with every possible l. As a conse-
quence of the simplification ␣1 = ␣2 = 21 , there is the symmetry
plified model in which the term ĤA has been neglected in the
␳k,l = ␳−k,l.
full Hamiltonian 共6兲 and as a consequence ␭ˆ becomes just a For large N, using a continuous approximation one can
complex function. In fact for parameters from the experi- replace Eq. 共10兲 with the following partial differential equa-
ments under consideration, the operator ␬ˆ in Eq. 共8兲 is only a tion:
small correction to ␻0. First we investigate the simple case
␭ = const 共what characterizes the evolution of the system lim-
ited to the short time scales兲 and then use results of these
⳵ Pk
⳵t
= 2␭共x + 1兲共x + 2k + 1兲 Pk +
⳵ Pk
⳵x
− 2␭x共x + 2k兲Pk , 冉 冊
considerations to the general case, the time-dependent ␭. We
investigate this system numerically for up to 1000 particles. 共11兲
We hold all relations between parameters ␭, ␣, and ␤ exactly where Pk共x = l , t兲 ⬇ ␳ 共t兲 and x replaces k,l N
In the inves- 2 − k − l.
as in 关10兴, but in order to effectively study the behavior for tigated system the biggest contribution to sum 共9兲 comes
such a small system we put an artificially large value ␭ from ␳0,m terms, which correspond to P0共m , t兲. We have
= 0.01. In Fig. 1 we show that the evolution of the average taken as the initial value correlated state 共1兲, which leads to
number of particles of the full equation is very similar to that ␳k,l = 21N 共 N/2−k
N
兲␦l,0. Its continuous counterpart is

冉 冊
for the simplified model. Furthermore we compare it with the
evolution of a very simple case, namely, a Fock state 1 N
兩␺典共0兲 = 兩N / 2 , N / 2典. All evolutions are summarized in Fig. 1. Pk共x,0兲 = N ␦„x − 共N/2 − k兲….
2 N/2 − k
Thus, the decay of the number of condensed atoms practi-
cally does not depend on the entanglement of the initial state. In this approximation the average number of particles can be
The average number of particles as a function of time can calculated as the sum

冕
be calculated as the following sum:
具â†1â1共t兲典 ⬇ 兺 dxPk共x,t兲x.
具â†1â1共t兲典 = Tr兵␳ˆ BECâ†1â1其 = 兺 k␳BEC
k,l,k,l
共t兲. 共9兲 k
k,l
Equation 共11兲 with this initial condition has the exact solu-
Due to the symmetry we introduce the following notation: tion, which gives

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KRZYSZTOF PAWŁOWSKI AND KAZIMIERZ RZĄŻEWSKI PHYSICAL REVIEW A 79, 043628 共2009兲

N/2
2k共N − k + 1兲 In the experimental situation time t is so small that ␭Nt Ⰶ 1.
具â†1â1共t兲典 = e−2␭t 兺
k=−N/2 共N + k + 1兲e
4k␭t
− Nk − 1
− 1. The largest terms in the sum above are those with k ⬍ 冑N. It
justifies the further approximation e4k␭t ⬇ 1 + 4k␭t. Then Eq.
共12兲 共12兲 takes the form

具â†1â1共t兲典 ⬇
冉
关␭共N + 2兲t + 1兴 2F1 − N,− N −
1
2␭t
− 1;− N −
1
2␭t
;− 1
−
1
− 1,
冊 共13兲
共2N+1␭t兲关2␭共N + 1兲t + 1兴 2␭t

where 2F1 is the hypergeometric function 关24兴. It allows us
to predict the short-time evolution of the average number of
particles even for a large system.
We compare our approximate result with the quantum
model for small particle numbers in Fig. 2, getting very good
agreement. It is also worth to notice that the dominant terms
in sum 共12兲 are near k = 0. Neglecting all terms except k = 0 is
equivalent to replacing the initial state with the Fock state
兩N / 2 , N / 2典. The time scale for a decay of 具â†1â1典 of the Fock
state is proportional to the inverse of the initial number of
particles,
N/2
具â†1â1共t兲典Fock ⬇
N␭t + 1
which is a good approximation also for the correlated state
共Fig. 3兲. This observation confirms then the result of 关25兴,
where the efficiency of the Fock ansatz was investigated. The
estimated rate of losses as a function of the initial number of
particles is also in good agreement with 关16兴. We consider
only very short time scales. In this regime one can approxi-
mate the average number of particles in the condensates with
a linear function of time, which corroborates 关16,19,20兴. For
longer time our result agrees only with 关16兴. The reason is
average number of particles in one drop
that both models do not include the bosonic enhancement.
For longer time the evolution of the average number of par-
ticles is driven by the overlap of both condensates.
Until this point our numerical and analytical estimations
were limited to the case ␭ = const. However, the parameter ␭
2
given by Eq. 共8兲 may be approximated with ␭0e−2␰t 共the
factor of 2 in the exponent appears, because we present result
in the laboratory, and not the center-of-momentum, frame兲,
where ␭0 = const. This approximation works well for the ex-
periments with a weak interaction between condensed atoms
共in our language it means ␭␣0 Ⰶ 1 and N␻␣0 Ⰶ 1兲. As a conse-
quence we are able to describe the full evolution using the
previous results and transforming the time:
, 共14兲
冑␲ Erf共冑2␰t兲
t哫 . 共15兲
2冑2␰
In Fig. 4 we present the numerical result of the average num-
ber of particles in one drop driven by Eq. 共7兲 and compare it
with analytic expression 共13兲 calculated for the transformed
time. The evolution of the average number of particles in one
drop, 具â†1â1典, is similar for the correlated and the Fock states.
Thus, to a good approximation, which gets better for the

400
2
time of decay 20% particles (s)

quantum model
continuous approximation numerical results
300 fitted curve
1.5

200
1

100
0.5

0
0 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2 0.25
t (s) 0
0 100 200 300 400 500
N
FIG. 2. 共Color online兲 Average number of particles as a function
of time t. Solid black lines are results of the discrete quantum model FIG. 3. Time at which 20% of particles have been scattered out
for 100 and 400 particles in each drop. The dashed red curves are versus the initial number of particles N. Dashed curve, fitted rela-
the results of our continuous approximation. tion 1 / N 共␭ = 0.01兲.

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500 1
numerical result
499.9 analytical result

499.8 0.995

N 1
499.7 g +
0.99 numerical result N=500
499.6
numerical result N=300
numerical result N=100
499.5 fitted curve
0 100 200 300 400 500
t (µs) 0.985
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5

FIG. 4. 共Color online兲 The decay of the number of particles due

t (s)
to the scattering for parameters ␭0 = 0.01, ␰ = 108, and ␣ = 0.001. The
FIG. 5. 共Color online兲 Numerical results of evolutions of the
solid black line, the numerical result; the dashed red line, the ana-
correlation function g+1 for different numbers of particles and the
lytical approximations.
fitted relation 1 − N␭2t2 共␭ = 0.01兲.

larger systems, we can estimate the number of particles

1
which remain in the condensates with the following formula: 具â†1â2典␭=0 = N关cos共2␣ + ␤兲t兴N−1 . 共19兲
2
N/2
具â†1â1共t兲典 ⬇ . 共16兲
N␭0冑␲ Erf共冑2␰t兲
Then the first-order correlation function has the structure of
+1 the collapse and the revival at time trev = 2␣␲+␤ . This is a re-
2冑2␰ versible dephasing already mentioned in Sec. I. When we
N␭ 冑␲ Erf共冑2␰t兲 take the scattering losses into account, the evolution is a
Assuming 0 2冑2␰ Ⰶ 1 one can calculate the number of competition between parameters ␣, ␤, and ␭. In the case
scattered atoms as ␣ , ␤ ⬎ ␭ we expect small revivals at trev. In the experiments
under consideration the ratio ␣␭ is less than 1 and no revival
N2␭0冑␲ Erf共冑2␰t兲
N − 2具â†1â1共t兲典 ⬇ 共17兲 could be seen.
2冑2␰ Following the scheme from the previous part of this pa-
per, we first investigate the simplest case, namely, ␭ = const,
N 2a 2 then we find some analytical approximations and “translate”
= Erf共冑␰t冑2兲. 共18兲 them into the experimental parameters. For the case ␭
␴2
= const the evolution of 具â†1â2典 is very similar to that of the
The last result has almost the same form as the estimations average number of particles in each drop. As a result for the
from the perturbation calculations given in 关15,18兴. In 关18兴 very short time g+1 decays slowly 共Fig. 5兲. We remark that for
this result was compared with the experiment 关12兴. a short time of evolution the function g+1 may be approximate
with 1 − N␭2t2. We check this observation directly in the Fig.
IV. RATE OF DECOHERENCE
5. From this results we see that time scale for the decay of
the first-order correlation function depends on the number of
Of great importance is the deterioration of the ability to particles as 1 / 冑N. This relation has been successfully
interfere of the two condensates which results from the checked with numerics; a sample of these comparisons is
losses, known as a decoherence. We have investigated the given in Fig. 6. We can reconstruct the conditions of experi-
decoherence in the system looking at the evolution of the ments transforming the time due to mapping 共15兲 and calcu-
lowest-order correlation functions. Of interest is the compari- late the parameters ␭0 and ␰ from the experimental data. This
son of the decay time of the coherence with that of the par- transformation is justifiable if the interaction between atoms
ticle number. Furthermore we also present results for the is, like in Sec. III, relatively small. For experiment 关10兴 the
second-order correlation functions. decay of the first-order correlation function is very little
The first-order correlation is governed by the evolution of 共⬃0.001%兲 and can be neglected.
the functions Master equation 共7兲 is also a useful tool for studying
higher-order correlation functions. We present the evolution
g+1 = 具â†1â2 + â†2â1典/2冑具â†1â1典具â†2â2典, of the second-order correlation functions defined as

g−1 = 具â†1â2 − â†2â1典/2冑具â†1â1典具â†2â2典. 2 具â†1â†2â1â2典

g12 = ,
具â†1â1典具â†2â2典
For our simple initial state g−1 = 0
and it is sufficient to inves-
tigate only the g+1 function. In the absence of scattering to the
具â†1â†1â1â1典
c modes, ␭ = 0, one can calculate the exact solution of the 2
g11 = .
master equation for 具â†1â2典, 具â†1â1典具â†2â2典

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1.25 1.01

400 atoms
200 atoms
1 100 atoms
numerical results 1.005
fitted curve
1/t (s )

0.75
-2

2
g 11
1
2

0.5

0.995
0.25

0 0.99
0 100 200 300 400 500 600 0 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2 0.25
N (a) t (s)

FIG. 6. 共Color online兲 The test of dependence of time scales for 1

decay of the first-order correlation function g+1 on the initial number 400 atoms
of particles N. On y axis is the time at which the function g+1 is 5% 200 atoms
0.998 100 atoms
smaller than the initial the one.

0.996
These functions do not change much during the process. In 2
Fig. 7 one can see a decrease in g112
below 1 共antibunching兲 g 12
and an increase in g12 ⬎ 1 共bunching兲—basing on the defini-
2 0.994
tions from 关26兴 for the case ␭ = const. In a single act of scat-
tering, occurring at random times, two atoms from different 0.992
condensates collide elastically and scatter out. This random-
ness is the source of the bunching. For the case of time-
0.99
dependent ␭ the change in the second-order correlations 0 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2 0.25
function is even smaller than in Fig. 7 and it would be ex- (b) t (s)
tremely difficult to detect.
FIG. 7. 共Color online兲 Second-order correlation functions for
different initial numbers of particles: 共a兲 g211; 共b兲 g212.
V. CONCLUSIONS

The main result of our work is the master equation for step we transform the density matrix and Hamiltonian 共6兲 to
colliding, interacting Bose condensates. We conclude that the the interaction picture
evolutions of the average number of particles for full and ˙ ˙
simplified models are very similar. We investigated analyti- H̃AE = eıHAt/បĤAEe−ıHAt/ប ,
cally a simple case—the dynamics of two correlated and
equal-size droplets of BEC, which gives a good insight into ˙ ˙
˜␳ = eıHAt/ប␳ˆ e−ıHAt/ប .
the dynamics of the system. We obtained the analytical for-
mula for the evolution of the average number of particles. We write H̃AE in the following form:
Using numerics we found that the decoherence is faster than
the decay of the population, but for the experimental param-
eters this decay is relatively small. The process is faster for a
H̃AE = 兺
q,k,i苸兵1,2其
共i兲
Vq,k 共i兲
共t兲Bq,k 共t兲 + H.c.,
larger number of particles. Furthermore we are also able to
共1兲 ˙ ˙
calculate higher-order correlation functions. The results were where ⌬ = 2␻0 − ␻共q兲 − ␻共k兲, Vq,k 共t兲 = ␭q,k共t兲e−ı⌬teı共␣+␤兲N̂t/ប
obtained for short time only but the extension to longer times ˙
−ı␤t/ប 共1兲 共2兲 共1兲
⫻e ␣1␣2â1â2, Vq,k共t兲 = 关Vq,k共t兲兴†, and Bq,k 共t兲 = ĉ†qĉ†k
is possible. 共2兲
= 关Bq,k共t兲兴 .
†

Using the von Neumann equation one can easily write the
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS first two terms of the perturbation series of the formal solu-
tion for the density matrix 共Born approximation兲,
We thank P. Ziń and P. Deuar for useful discussions. The

冕
work was supported by Polish Government research funds
for 2006–2009. d˜␳ 1 t
ı̇
= d␶†H̃AE共t兲,关H̃AE共␶兲,˜␳共␶兲兴‡ − 关H̃AE共t兲,˜␳共0兲兴.
dt ប2 0 ប
APPENDIX: MASTER EQUATION 共A1兲

We present a derivation of a master equation for the re- We compute the trace of both sides of Eq. 共A1兲 with respect
duced density matrix. To this end we follow 关22兴. In the first to the environment and get the following equation:

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DECOHERENCE IN THE COLLISION OF TWO BOSE-… PHYSICAL REVIEW A 79, 043628 共2009兲

d˜␳BEC
dt
1
=− 2
ប
冕 t

0
d␶ TrE兵†H̃AE共t兲关H̃AE共␶兲,˜␳共␶兲兴‡其
The standard approximation extends the limit of integra-
tion from t to ⬁, which makes the calculation shorter and
does not change significantly the value of the integral,

冕 冕
ı̇ t ⬁
− TrE兵关H̃AE共t兲,˜␳tot共0兲兴其. 共A2兲 ˙ ˙ 2 ˙ ˙ 2
ប d␶eı⌬·␶e−ı␬ˆ ␶e−␰␶ ⬇ d␶eı⌬␶e−ı␬ˆ ␶e−␰␶
0 0

冑冋 冉 冊册
We assume that initially the density operator is a product of
the density operator of the condensates ␳BEC and the density 1 2 ␲ ⌬ − ␬ˆ
= e−共⌬ − ␬ˆ 兲 /4␰ 1 + ı̇ Erfi .
operator of the environment. From the initial conditions 2 ␰ 2 冑␰

The value of ⌬2−冑␰␬ is on the order of 100. The function Erfi共x兲

ˆ
TrE兵关H̃AE共t兲,˜␳tot共0兲兴其 = 0,
for x = 100 is a real huge number 关Erfi共100兲 ⬃ 104300兴. In fact
Equation 共A2兲 takes the form it gives incredible shift to the free energy of the condensates.

冕
This is just an analog of the principal-value part in
d˜␳BEC 1 t
d␶ TrE兵†H̃AE共t兲关H̃AE共␶兲,˜␳共␶兲兴‡其
冕
=− 2 ⬁
dt ប ˙ 1
eı共␻0−␻兲␶ = ␲␦共␻0 − ␻兲 − ı̇P
0

0 共␻0 − ␻兲
and can be rewritten as

冕
encountered, for instance, in a study of a spontaneous emis-
d˜␳BEC 1 t
=− 2 d␶ 兺 V共2兲 共1兲
q 共t兲Vq 共␶兲˜
␳BEC − V共1兲 ␳BECV共2兲
q 共t兲˜ q 共␶兲
sion from a two-level atom 关27兴. In that case the infinite
dt ប 0 q value of this shift is 共after renormalization兲 interpreted as the
Lamb shift and incorporated into the transition frequency of
− V共1兲 ␳BECV共2兲
q 共␶兲˜ ␳BECV共2兲
q 共t兲 + ˜
共1兲
q 共t兲Vq 共␶兲. 共A3兲 the atom. In analogy we neglect the corresponding term in
Invoking the Markov approximation we approximate the our derivation. Moreover, the exact value of the eigenvalue
operator ␳BEC共␶兲 under the integral over ␶ with ␳BEC共t兲. After of the Hamiltonian ĤA drops out from further calculations,
eliminating the degrees of freedom of the environment, one
can transform the whole equation back to the Schrödinger 8g2兩␣1␣2兩2冑␲
冑␰ V 2 ប 2 兺
2 2 ˙ 2 2
picture. Finally, the master equation takes the form ␭ˆ = e−␴ 共k + q兲 /2eı共␬ˆ −⌬兲te−␰t e−共⌬ − ␬ˆ 兲 /4␰ .
k,q
2 2
d␳BEC In the Gaussian function e−␴ 共k + q兲 /2 the wave vectors k
= − 关␭ˆ †â1â2␳BEC,â†1â†2兴 − 关â1â2, ␳BECâ†1â†2␭ˆ 兴. and q corresponds to the wave vectors of the scattered atoms.
dt
From the momentum conservation both vectors should have
The operator ␭ˆ is defined as similar lengths to Q ⬇ 3.6⫻ 106 m−1—the length of the wave
vectors of the condensates. The dispersion 1 / ␴ has a rela-
␭ˆ =
16兩␣1␣2兩2g2
V 2ប 2
冕0
t
d ␶ 兺 e −␴
k,q
2共k + q兲2/2 −ı˙⌬共t−␶兲 ˙ı␬
e ˆ 共t−␶兲 −␰共t2+␶2兲
e e , tively small value of 2 ⫻ 104 m−1. Thus it is reasonable to do
the following approximation:

where ␬ˆ = 关共␣ + ␤兲N̂ − ␤兴 and ␰ = ␴ប 2Qm2 is a square of the time of

冉 冊
2 2
2共k + q兲2/2 2␲ 3/2
e −␴ ⬇ ␦共k + q兲.
overlapping of two condensates. ␴2
The crucial point is to calculate the coupling ␭ˆ . The next
pages are devoted to this calculation. Now, the operator ␭ˆ can be rewritten as

␭ˆ 共t兲 =
8兩␣1␣2兩2g2冑␲ V2
V2冑␰ប2 共2␲兲
6 冕 dqdke−␴
2共k + q兲2/2 −ı˙⌬·t ˙ı␬
e ˆ t −␰t2 −共⌬ − ␬ˆ 兲2/4␰
e e e

=
16兩␣1␣2兩2g2冑2␲2
共2␲兲 冑␰␴3ប2
6 冕 ˙ ˙ 2
dqe−2ı关␻0−␻共q兲兴teı␬ˆ te−␰t e−关␻0 − ␻共q兲 − 共1/2兲␬ˆ 兴
2/␰

=
64兩␣1␣2兩2g2冑2␲3
共2␲兲 冑␰␴ ប
6 3 2
4␲ 冕 ˙ ˙ 2
dqqe−2ı关␻0−␻共q兲兴teı␬ˆ te−␰t 共qe−关␻0 − ␻共q兲 − 共1/2兲␬ˆ 兴 /␰兲.
2
共A4兲

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KRZYSZTOF PAWŁOWSKI AND KAZIMIERZ RZĄŻEWSKI PHYSICAL REVIEW A 79, 043628 共2009兲

兩␣1␣2兩2g2冑2 −␰t2
冑 冉 冊
2
The function qe−关␻0 − ␻共q兲 − 共1 / 2兲␬ˆ 兴 /␰ is well localized around 2m 1
␭ˆ 共t兲 = 2 e ␻0 − ␬ˆ
ប 冑␰␴3␲3
these q, which satisfy a condition ប 2

␻共q兲 = ␻0 − 21 ␬ˆ . ⫻ 冕 2
dqqe−关␻0 − ␻共q兲 − 共1/2兲␬ˆ 兴 /␰ .

For example, in the experiment in 关10兴 the appropriate 2

The function 兰dqqe−关␻0 − ␻共q兲 − 共1 / 2兲␬ˆ 兴 /␰ can be transformed to a
parameters have values ␻0 ⬃ 17 000 Hz and 冑␰ ⬃ 200 Hz. It
simple integral over a Gaussian function 关␻共q兲 = ប2m q2
兴,

冋 冉 冊册
justifies further approximation

冕 冑␲␰ 1 + Erf ␻0 − 2 ␬ˆ
1
2/␰ m
dqqe−关␻0 − ␻共q兲 − 共1/2兲␬ˆ 兴 = .
冑␰
冉 冊
2ប
2/␰ 1
qe−关␻0 − ␻共q兲 − 共1/2兲␬ˆ 兴 ⬇ ␦ ␻0 − ␻共q兲 − ␬ˆ Finally
2

⫻ 冕 dqqe −关␻0 − ␻共q兲 − 共1/2兲␬ˆ 兴2/␰

. ␭ˆ =
兩␣1␣2兩2mg2冑␲ −␰t2
ប 3␴ 3␲ 3
e 冑冉 m
ប
1
␻0 − ␬ˆ
2
冊
共A5兲
冋 冉 冊册
⫻ 1 + Erf
␻0 − 21 ␬ˆ
冑␰ ,

Substituting Eq. 共A5兲 into Eq. 共A4兲 we get which is formula 共8兲 used in the main part of this paper.

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