Münchner Physik Kolloquium: Quantum Magnetism with Ultracold Atoms - A Microscopic View on Artificial Quantum Matter

by Markus Greiner (Department of Physics, Harvard University)

Monday 4 Jul 2011, 17:15 → 18:45 Europe/Berlin

Hörsaal H 030 (Fakultät für Physik der LMU, Schellingstr. 4, München)

Understanding the behavior of strongly-interacting spin systems is one of the central objectives of modern many body quantum physics. I will present experiments in which we have realized quantum magnetism with ultracold atoms in an optical lattice. We carry out a quantum simulation of an Ising spin chain and demonstrate a quantum phase-transition from a paramagnetic phase to an anti-ferromagnetic phase. The magnetic phases are detected in situ through our quantum gas microscope. This work opens a wide range of new possibilities for studying quantum magnetism. Exotic states of matter and frustrated spin physics in optical lattices are now within experimental reach.