Coupled dynamics of interacting spin-1 bosons in a double-well potential

Abstract

We present a detailed analysis of dynamical processes involving two or three particles in a double-well potential. Motivated by experimental realizations of such a system with optically trapped cold atoms, we focus on spin-1 bosons with special attention on the effects of a spin-dependent interaction in addition to the usual Hubbard-like repulsive one. For a sufficiently weak tunneling amplitude in comparison to the dominant Hubbard coupling, particle motion is strongly correlated, occurring only under fine-tuned relationships between well-depth asymmetry and interactions. We highlight processes involving tunneling of coupled particle pairs and triads, emphasizing the role of the spin-dependent interaction in resonance conditions.