Direct and Inverse Cascades in Turbulent Bose-Einstein Condensates

Abstract

When a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) is driven out of equilibrium, density waves interact nonlinearly and trigger turbulent cascades. In a turbulent BEC, energy is transferred toward small scales by a direct cascade, whereas the number of particles displays an inverse cascade toward large scales. In this work, we study analytically and numerically the direct and inverse cascades in wave-turbulent BECs. We analytically derive the Kolmogorov-Zakharov spectra, including the log correction to the direct cascade scaling and the universal prefactor constants for both cascades. We test and corroborate our predictions using high-resolution numerical simulations of the forced-dissipated Gross-Pitaevskii model in a periodic box and the corresponding wave-kinetic equation. Theoretical predictions and data are in excellent agreement, without adjustable parameters. Moreover, in order to connect with experiments, we test and validate our theoretical predictions using the Gross-Pitaevskii model with a confining cubic trap. Our results explain previous experimental observations and suggest new settings for future studies.