Jean Claude Garreau

Experimental Observation of the Anderson Metal-Insulator Transition with Atomic Matter Waves

We realize experimentally an atom-optics quantum-chaotic system, the quasiperiodic kicked rotor, which is equivalent to a 3D disordered system that allows us to demonstrate the Anderson metal-insulator transition. Sensitive measurements of the atomic wave function and the use of finite-size scaling techniques make it possible to extract both the critical parameters and the critical exponent of the transition, the latter being in good agreement with the value obtained in numerical simulations of the 3D Anderson model.

Self-Similarities in the Frequency-Amplitude Space of a Loss-Modulated CO2 Laser

We show the standard two-level continuous-time model of loss-modulated CO2 lasers to display the same regular network of self-similar stability islands known so far to be typically present only in discrete-time models based on mappings. Our results suggest that the two-parameter space of class B laser models and that of a certain class of discrete mappings could be isomorphic.

Critical state of the Anderson transition: between a metal and an insulator.

Using a three-frequency one-dimensional kicked rotor experimentally realized with a cold atomic gas, we study the transport properties at the critical point of the metal-insulator Anderson transition. We accurately measure the time-evolution of an initially localized wavepacket and show that it displays at the critical point a scaling invariance characteristic of this second-order phase transition. The shape of the momentum distribution at the critical point is found to be in excellent agreement with the analytical form deduced from self-consistent theory of localization.

Experimental Test of Universality of the Anderson Transition

We experimentally test the universality of the Anderson three dimensional metal-insulator transition, using a quasiperiodic atomic kicked rotor. Nine sets of parameters controlling the microscopic details have been tested. Our observation indicates that the transition is of second order, with a critical exponent independent of the microscopic details; the average value 1.63±0.05 agrees very well with the numerically predicted value ν=1.58.

Observation of Sub-Fourier Resonances in a Quantum-Chaotic System

We experimentally show that the response of a quantum-chaotic system can display resonance lines sharper than the inverse of the excitation duration. This allows us to discriminate two neighboring frequencies with a resolution nearly 40 times better than the limit set by the Fourier inequality. Furthermore, numerical studies indicate that there is no limit, but the loss of signal, to this resolution, opening ways for the development of sub-Fourier quantum-chaotic signal processing.

Theoretical analysis of quantum dynamics in one-dimensional lattices: Wannier-Stark description

This paper presents a formalism describing the dynamics of a quantum particle in a one-dimensional, tilted, time-dependent lattice. The description uses the Wannier-Stark states, which are localized in each site of the lattice, and provides a simple framework leading to fully analytical developments. Particular attention is devoted to the case of a time-dependent potential, which results in a rich variety of quantum coherent dynamics.

How Nonlinear Interactions Challenge the Three-Dimensional Anderson Transition

In disordered systems, our present understanding of the Anderson transition is hampered by the possible presence of interactions between particles. We demonstrate that in boson gases, even weak interactions deeply alter the very nature of the Anderson transition. While there still exists a critical point in the system, below that point a novel phase appears, displaying a new critical exponent, subdiffusive transport, and a breakdown of the one-parameter scaling description of Anderson localization.

Quantum scaling laws in the onset of dynamical delocalization

By submitting a cloud of cold caesium atoms to a periodically pulsed standing wave, we experimentally realized a quantum system presenting a dynamic that is chaotic in the classical limit called the Kicked Rotor. Such a system presents a phenomenon called dynamical localization (DL). DL is the suppression of the classical chaotic energy growth by quantum interferences due to long range coherence in momentum space. After a breaktime, the quantum momentum distribution is frozen to a steady state and the energy is stuck to an asymptotic value.

Atomic motion in tilted optical lattices: an analytical approach

This paper presents general results concerning the quantum dynamics in a tilted, time-modulated, one-dimensional, optical lattice. A dynamic equation describing the atomic motion is analytically solved, and the solution used to characterize the corresponding dynamics through the spatial mean position and dispersion of the wavepacket. The analysis of such quantities gives a quite complete picture of the quantum dynamics, and provides evidence for the central role of the quantum coherence.

Quantum motor: Directed wave-packet motion in an optical lattice

We propose a method for arbitrary manipulations of a quantum wave packet in an optical lattice by a suitable modulation of the lattice amplitude. A theoretical model allows us to determine the modulation needed to generate an arbitrary atomic trajectory; wave-packet rotations can also be implemented. The method is immediately usable in state-of-the-art experiments.