Abstract
The formation process of a Bose-Einstein condensate in a trap is described using a master equation based on quantum kinetic theory, which can be well approximated by a description using only the condensate mode in interaction with a thermalized bath of noncondensate atoms. A rate equation of the form is derived, in which the difference between the condensate chemical potential and the bath chemical potential gives the essential behavior. Solutions of this equation give a characteristic latency period for condensate formation and appear to be consistent with the observed behavior of both rubidium and sodium condensate formation.
- Received 2 May 1997
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.79.1793
©1997 American Physical Society