Monday, 08 June, 2009
ac-Driven Atomic Quantum Motor
A. V. Ponomarev, S. Denisov, and P. Hänggi -
Phys. Rev. Lett. 102, 230601 (2009)
We propose an ac-driven quantum motor consisting of two different, interacting ultracold atoms placed into a ring-shaped optical lattice and submerged in a pulsating magnetic field. While the first atom carries a current, the second one serves as a quantum starter. For fixed zero-momentum initial conditions the asymptotic carrier velocity converges to a unique nonzero value. We also demonstrate that this quantum motor performs work against a constant load.