AC Josephson effect between two superfluid time crystals

S. Autti; P. J. Heikkinen; J. T. Mäkinen; G. E. Volovik; V. V. Zavjalov; V. B. Eltsov

doi:10.1038/s41563-020-0780-y

AC Josephson effect between two superfluid time crystals

S. Autti^*
, P. J. Heikkinen
, J. T. Mäkinen
, G. E. Volovik
, V. V. Zavjalov
, V. B. Eltsov

^*Corresponding author for this work

Lancaster University
Yale University
Landau Institute for Theoretical Physics
Royal Holloway University of London

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Scientific › peer-review

68 Citations (Scopus)

146 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

Quantum time crystals are systems characterized by spontaneously emerging periodic order in the time domain(1). While originally a phase of broken time translation symmetry was a mere speculation(2), a wide range of time crystals has been reported(3-5). However, the dynamics and interactions between such systems have not been investigated experimentally. Here we study two adjacent quantum time crystals realized by two magnon condensates in superfluid(3)He-B. We observe an exchange of magnons between the time crystals leading to opposite-phase oscillations in their populations-a signature of the AC Josephson effect(6)-while the defining periodic motion remains phase coherent throughout the experiment. Our results demonstrate that time crystals obey the general dynamics of quantum mechanics and offer a basis to further investigate the fundamental properties of these phases, opening pathways for possible applications in developing fields, such as quantum information processing.

Two adjacent quantum time crystals implemented by two magnon condensates in the superfluid B-phase of helium-3 are observed to coherently exchange magnons as a manifestation of the AC Josephson effect, offering insights on the dynamics and interactions between these phases of matter.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	171-174
Number of pages	4
Journal	Nature Materials
Volume	20
Issue number	2
Early online date	1 Jan 2020
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1038/s41563-020-0780-y
Publication status	Published - Feb 2021
MoE publication type	A1 Journal article-refereed

Funding

This work has been supported by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agreement no. 694248). The experimental work was carried out in the Low Temperature Laboratory, which is part of the OtaNano research infrastructure of Aalto University and of the European Microkelvin Platform. S.A. acknowledges financial support from the Jenny and Antti Wihuri Foundation, and P.J.H. from the Väisälä Foundation of the Finnish Academy of Science and Letters.

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title = "AC Josephson effect between two superfluid time crystals",

abstract = "Quantum time crystals are systems characterized by spontaneously emerging periodic order in the time domain(1). While originally a phase of broken time translation symmetry was a mere speculation(2), a wide range of time crystals has been reported(3-5). However, the dynamics and interactions between such systems have not been investigated experimentally. Here we study two adjacent quantum time crystals realized by two magnon condensates in superfluid(3)He-B. We observe an exchange of magnons between the time crystals leading to opposite-phase oscillations in their populations-a signature of the AC Josephson effect(6)-while the defining periodic motion remains phase coherent throughout the experiment. Our results demonstrate that time crystals obey the general dynamics of quantum mechanics and offer a basis to further investigate the fundamental properties of these phases, opening pathways for possible applications in developing fields, such as quantum information processing.Two adjacent quantum time crystals implemented by two magnon condensates in the superfluid B-phase of helium-3 are observed to coherently exchange magnons as a manifestation of the AC Josephson effect, offering insights on the dynamics and interactions between these phases of matter.",

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AU - Autti, S.

AU - Heikkinen, P. J.

AU - Mäkinen, J. T.

AU - Volovik, G. E.

AU - Zavjalov, V. V.

AU - Eltsov, V. B.

N1 - | openaire: EC/H2020/694248/EU//TOPVAC

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N2 - Quantum time crystals are systems characterized by spontaneously emerging periodic order in the time domain(1). While originally a phase of broken time translation symmetry was a mere speculation(2), a wide range of time crystals has been reported(3-5). However, the dynamics and interactions between such systems have not been investigated experimentally. Here we study two adjacent quantum time crystals realized by two magnon condensates in superfluid(3)He-B. We observe an exchange of magnons between the time crystals leading to opposite-phase oscillations in their populations-a signature of the AC Josephson effect(6)-while the defining periodic motion remains phase coherent throughout the experiment. Our results demonstrate that time crystals obey the general dynamics of quantum mechanics and offer a basis to further investigate the fundamental properties of these phases, opening pathways for possible applications in developing fields, such as quantum information processing.Two adjacent quantum time crystals implemented by two magnon condensates in the superfluid B-phase of helium-3 are observed to coherently exchange magnons as a manifestation of the AC Josephson effect, offering insights on the dynamics and interactions between these phases of matter.

AB - Quantum time crystals are systems characterized by spontaneously emerging periodic order in the time domain(1). While originally a phase of broken time translation symmetry was a mere speculation(2), a wide range of time crystals has been reported(3-5). However, the dynamics and interactions between such systems have not been investigated experimentally. Here we study two adjacent quantum time crystals realized by two magnon condensates in superfluid(3)He-B. We observe an exchange of magnons between the time crystals leading to opposite-phase oscillations in their populations-a signature of the AC Josephson effect(6)-while the defining periodic motion remains phase coherent throughout the experiment. Our results demonstrate that time crystals obey the general dynamics of quantum mechanics and offer a basis to further investigate the fundamental properties of these phases, opening pathways for possible applications in developing fields, such as quantum information processing.Two adjacent quantum time crystals implemented by two magnon condensates in the superfluid B-phase of helium-3 are observed to coherently exchange magnons as a manifestation of the AC Josephson effect, offering insights on the dynamics and interactions between these phases of matter.

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AC Josephson effect between two superfluid time crystals

Abstract

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