Decay of a Bose-Einstein condensate in a dissipative lattice – the mean-field approximation and beyond

The dynamical evolution of a Bose-Einstein condensate in an open optical lattice is studied. Based on the Bose-Hubbard model we rederive the mean-field limit for the case of an environmental coupling including dissipation and phase-noise. Moreover, we include the next order correlation functions to investigate the dynamical behavior beyond mean field. We observe that particle loss can lead to surprising dynamics, as it can suppress decay and at the same time restore the coherence of the condensate. These behavior can be used to engineer the evolution, e.g. in the form of a stochastic resonance-like response, to inhibit tunneling or to create stable nonlinear structures of the condensate.