Strong correlations in lossy one-dimensional quantum gases: From the quantum Zeno effect to the generalized Gibbs ensemble
Davide Rossini, Alexis Ghermaoui, Manel Bosch Aguilera, Rémy Vatré, Raphaël Bouganne, J. Beugnon, Fabrice Gerbier, Leonardo Mazza
Abstract
We consider strong two-body losses in bosonic gases trapped in one-dimensional optical lattices. We exploit the separation of timescales typical of a system in the many-body quantum Zeno regime to establish a connection with the theory of the time-dependent generalized Gibbs ensemble. Our main result is a simple set of rate equations that capture the simultaneous action of coherent evolution and two-body losses. This treatment gives an accurate description of the dynamics of a gas prepared in a Mott insulating state and shows that its long-time behavior deviates significantly from mean-field analyses. The possibility of observing our predictions in an experiment with $^{174}\mathrm{Yb}$ in a metastable state is also discussed.