Recent experiments with Bose-Einstein condensates of dysprosium and erbium atoms have observed the formation of droplets that can preserve their form, even in the absence of any external confinement [1]. These droplets occur in the regime where the long-ranged dipole-dipole interaction between the atoms dominates over the short-ranged contact interaction. In this regime meanfield theory predicts that the condensate is unstable to collapse. However, as the collapse begins, and the density increases, the Lee-Huang-Yang corrections to meanfield energy [2] become important and stabilizes the system as a finite sized droplet. I will discuss our recent theoretical work predicting the existence and properties of self-bound droplets [3] and their excitations [4]. 

[1] M. Schmitt, M. Wenzel, F. Böttcher, I. Ferrier-Barbut, and T. Pfau, Nature 539, 259 (2016).
[2] T. D. Lee, K. Huang, and C. N. Yang, Phys. Rev. 106, 1135 (1957)
[3] D. Baillie, R. M. Wilson, R. N. Bisset, and P. B. Blakie, Phys. Rev. A 94, 021602(R) (2016).
[4] D. Baillie, R. M. Wilson, P. B. Blakie, arXiv:1703.07927

Professor Blair Blakie did undergraduate and postgraduate studies at the University of Otago. He was a postdoctoral fellow at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (Maryland, USA) from 2001-2004, after which he joined the department of physics as a lecturer. Professor Blair is now the deputy head of the department. His research interest is mainly focused on degenerate quantum gases, including dipolar and spinor quantum gases.