Interaction quench induced multimode dynamics of finite atomic ensembles

The correlated non-equilibrium dynamics of few-boson systems in one-dimensional finite lattices is investigated. Starting from weak interactions we perform a sudden interaction quench and employ the numerically exact multi-layer multi-configuration time-dependent Hartree method for bosons to obtain the resulting quantum dynamics. Focusing on the low-lying modes of the finite lattice we observe the emergence of density-wave tunneling, breathing and cradle-like processes. In particular, the tunneling induced by the quench leads to a 'global' density-wave oscillation. The resulting breathing and cradle modes are inherent to the local intrawell dynamics and connected to excited-band states. Moreover, the interaction quenches couple the density-wave and the cradle modes allowing for resonance phenomena. These are associated with an avoided-crossing in the respective frequency spectrum and lead to a beating dynamics for the cradle. Finally, complementing the numerical studies, an effective Hamiltonian in terms of the relevant Fock states is derived for the description of the spectral properties and the related resonant dynamics.