Direct observation of growth and collapse of a Bose-Einstein condensate with attractive interactions

Summary form only given. Quantum theory predicts that Bose-Einstein condensation (BEC) of a spatially homogeneous gas with attractive interactions is precluded by a conventional phase transition into either a liquid or solid. When confined to a trap, however, such a condensate can form provided that its occupation number No does not exceed a limiting value. The stability limit is determined by a balance between self-attraction and a repulsion arising from position-momentum uncertainty under conditions of spatial confinement. Near the stability limit, self-attraction can overwhelm the repulsion, causing the condensate to collapse. Growth of the condensate, therefore, is punctuated by intermittent collapses, which are triggered either by macroscopic quantum tunneling or thermal fluctuation. The data presented here are the first direct observations of the growth and collapse of Bose Einstein condensates with attractive interactions.