Efimov States in a Bose-Einstein Condensate near a Feshbach Resonance

Abstract

Recent experiments with Bose-Einstein condensates of 85Rb atoms near a Feshbach resonance have produced evidence for a condensate of diatomic molecules coexisting with the atom condensate. It should also be possible to create condensates of the triatomic molecules predicted by Efimov coexisting with the atom and dimer condensates. The smoking gun for the trimer condensate would be oscillatory dependence of observables on the binding energy of the trimer. It may also be possible to deduce the existence of the trimer condensate from the spectra of the bursts of atoms and dimers created in the disappearance of the trimers.