Effective potentials in a rotating spin-orbit-coupled spin-1 spinor condensate

We theoretically study the stationary-state vortex lattice configurations of rotating spin-orbit (SO)- and coherently-coupled spin-1 Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs) trapped in quasi-two-dimensional harmonic potentials. The combined effects of rotation, SO and coherent couplings are analyzed systematically from the single-particle perspective. Through the single-particle Hamiltonian, which is exactly solvable for one-dimensional coupling, we illustrate that a boson in these rotating SO- and coherently-coupled condensates are subjected to effective toroidal, symmetric double-well, or asymmetric double-well potentials under specific coupling and rotation strengths. In the presence of mean-field interactions, using the coupled Gross-Pitaevskii formalism at moderate to high rotation frequencies, the analytically obtained effective potential minima and the numerically obtained coarse-grained density maxima position are in excellent agreement. On rapid rotation, we further find that the spin-expectation per particle of an antiferromagnetic spin-1 BEC approaches unity indicating a similarity in the response with ferromagnetic SO-coupled condensates.

Automated summary

We systematically analyze the stationary-state vortex lattice configurations of rotating spin-orbit (SO)- and coherently-coupled spin-1 Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs) trapped in quasi-two-dimensional harmonic potentials from the single-particle perspective. We find that under specific coupling and rotation strengths, bosons in these condensates experience effective toroidal, symmetric double-well, or asymmetric double-well potentials. On rapid rotation, we further discover a similarity in the response between antiferromagnetic spin-1 BECs and ferromagnetic SO-coupled condensates, indicated by the spin-expectation per particle approaching unity.