We compute the ground state of dipoles in a quasi-one-dimensional ring trap using few-body techniques combined with analytical arguments. The effective interaction between two dipoles depends on their center-of-mass coordinate and can be tuned by varying the angle between dipoles and the plane of the ring. For sufficiently weak interactions, the state resembles a weakly interacting Fermi gas or a (inhomogeneous) Lieb-Liniger gas. A mapping between the Lieb-Liniger–gas parameters and the dipolar-gas parameters in and beyond the Born approximation is established, and we discuss the effect of inhomogeneities based on a local-density approximation. For strongly repulsive interactions, the system exhibits a crystal-like localization of the particles. Their inhomogeneous distribution may be understood in terms of a simple few-body model as well as a local-density approximation. In the case of partially attractive interactions, clustered states form for sufficiently strong coupling, and the dependence of the state on particle number and orientation angle of the dipoles is discussed analytically.

• Received 27 October 2011

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.84.063619