Observation of vortices and vortex stripes in a dipolar condensate

Abstract

Quantized vortices are a prototypical feature of superfluidity that have been observed in multiple quantum gas experiments. But the occurrence of vortices in dipolar quantum gases—a class of ultracold gases characterized by long-range anisotropic interactions—has not been reported yet. Here we exploit the anisotropic nature of the dipole–dipole interaction of a dysprosium Bose–Einstein condensate to induce angular symmetry breaking in an otherwise cylindrically symmetric pancake-shaped trap. Tilting the magnetic field towards the radial plane deforms the cloud into an ellipsoid, which is then set into rotation. At stirring frequencies approaching the radial trap frequency, we observe the generation of dynamically unstable surface excitations, which cause angular momentum to be pumped into the system through vortices. Under continuous rotation, the vortices arrange into a stripe configuration along the field, in close agreement with numerical simulations.