Specific Heat of an Ultracold Bose Gas in a Harmonic Trap
Year: 2013
Type: dissertation
Abstract: In this thesis we look at theory and experiments with the purpose of finding an\nexperimental value for the specific heat of a Bose-Einstein condensate. First,\nwe consider basic thermodynamics in a harmonic trap to define\nthe concept of specific heat in this context. A model is constructed for the measurements and the measurements themselves are discussed. The first part of this thesis considers a time dependent magnetic\ntrap to add energy to the system. We will predict this increase in energy\nby theory to be able to calculate the specific heat. This method turns out to be impractical and\ndifficult to implement correctly experimentally. This is partly because of\nexperimental difficulties but mainly because the process is not sufficiently understood. The\nsecond part concerns a laser beam illuminating the cloud to induce heating\nlike in phase contrast imaging. Although theoretical predictions and experiments do not agree with one another,\na scheme is laid out to be able to determine the specific heat from these\nexperiments.
Author: Damaz de Jong
Language: English
Subfield: Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W196044628