Density–density correlation of ultracold atomic gases released from a series of attractive potentials

The purpose of this paper is to explore the density–density correlation for the ultracold atomic gases released from a series of attractive potentials. It is found that the interference fringes in the density–density correlation reflect in a unique way the arrangement of these attractive potentials, which is similar to the Hanbury–Brown–Twiss stellar interferometer. To clearly show this, after a general theoretical study, we study in detail the situations for a series of attractive potentials arranged along the circumferences of an ellipse and a circle. An experimental scheme to observe this theoretical predication is discussed.