Mobile Magnetic Impurities in a Fermi Superfluid: A Route to Designer Molecules

Sarang Gopalakrishnan, Colin V. Parker, and Eugene Demler
Phys. Rev. Lett. 114, 045301 – Published 28 January 2015
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Abstract

A magnetic impurity in a fermionic superfluid hosts bound quasiparticle states known as Yu-Shiba-Rusinov states. We argue here that, if the impurity is mobile (i.e., has a finite mass), the impurity and its bound Yu-Shiba-Rusinov quasiparticle move together as a midgap molecule, which has an unusual “Mexican-hat” dispersion that is tunable via the fermion density. We map out the impurity dispersion, which consists of an “atomic” branch (in which the impurity is dressed by quasiparticle pairs) and a “molecular” branch (in which the impurity binds a quasiparticle). We discuss the experimental realization and detection of midgap Shiba molecules, focusing on Li-Cs mixtures, and comment on the prospects they offer for realizing exotic many-body states.

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  • Received 4 June 2014

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.114.045301

© 2015 American Physical Society

Authors & Affiliations

Sarang Gopalakrishnan1, Colin V. Parker2, and Eugene Demler1

  • 1Department of Physics, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA
  • 2James Franck Institute and Department of Physics, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60637, USA

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Vol. 114, Iss. 4 — 30 January 2015

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