Tunneling-induced angular momentum for single cold atoms

Abstract

We study the generation of angular momentum carrying states for a single cold particle by breaking the symmetry of a spatial adiabatic passage process in a two-dimensional system consisting of three harmonic potential wells. By following a superposition of two eigenstates of the system, a single cold particle is completely transferred to the degenerate first excited states of the final trap, which are resonantly coupled via tunneling to the ground states of the initial and middle traps. Depending on the total time of the process, angular momentum is generated in the final trap, with values that oscillate between $\pm\hbar$. This process is discussed in terms of the asymptotic eigenstates of the individual wells and the results have been checked by simulations of the full two-dimensional Schr\"odinger equation.