Bosons in anisotropic traps: Ground state and vortices

We solve the Gross-Pitaevskii equations for a dilute atomic gas in a magnetic trap, modeled by an anisotropic harmonic potential. We evaluate the wave function and the energy of the Bose-Einstein condensate as a function of the particle number, both for positive and negative scattering length. The results for the transverse and the vertical size of the cloud of atoms, as well as for the kinetic and potential energy per particle, are compared with the predictions of approximated models. We also compare the aspect ratio of the velocity distribution with experimental estimates available for ⁸⁷Rb. Vortex states are considered and the critical angular velocity for production of vortices is calculated. We show that the presence of vortices significantly increases the stability of the condensate in the case of attractive interactions. © 1996 The American Physical Society.