Peter Engels
WSU Physics

Over the past few years, experiments with ultracold quantum gases have become a major theme in modern physics. They display fundamental quantum
mechanical behavior of a macroscopic object, are governed by intriguing nonlinear dynamics, and provide a new tool with which one can model complex
condensed matter scenarios.

In this talk I will report on my current research with Bose-Einstein condensates at Washington State University. With a newly constructed setup at WSU, BEC has been reached in May 2006. I will give a general introduction to the field and discuss current experiments in nonlinear hydrodynamics with BECs, including the phenomenon of quantum shock waves which I am currently studying in my experiments.