Raman dressing of BECs: from modified dispersions to novel hydrodynamics and phases of matter

Raman dressed Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs)  are a very rich system for the investigation of novel hydrodynamics and unusual phases of matter. In this talk, I will discuss recent and ongoing experiments at Washington State University in which we investigate the peculiar properties that result from a coupling of motional and internal (pseudo-spin) degrees of freedom afforded by the  Raman dressing. As a first example, we investigate a system comprised of a Raman-dressed BEC and a matching optical lattice that leads to a coupling between the two minima of the lowest dispersion band. In this way, a stripe phase can be generated that is reminiscent of a supersolid, a peculiar state of matter that has been, and continues to be, the focus of recent experimental scrutiny. Furthermore, we have also developed a range of experimental tools to excite and probe dynamics in such systems from the linear to the nonlinear regime. For example, by sweeping a barrier through a Raman-dressed BEC, we have demonstrated a unidirectional spin switch that provides an interesting new paradigm for possible spintronics related applications.

I will highlight the current status and future direction of these experiments.