Condensation of N bosons and the laser phase transition analogy

A simple analytic expression for the ground state of a dilute gas of N ideal bosons in a 3D harmonic potential at temperature T is derived from the steady state solutions of nonequilibrium equations of motion. The N particle constraint plays the important role of introducing the essential nonlinearity yielding a Ginzburg-Landau free energy. The present analysis has much in common with the quantum theory of the laser, and with the laser phase transition analogy. 1999 The American Physical Society.

Condensation of N bosons and the laser phase transition analogy Academic Article