Extended Bose Hubbard model for two leg ladder systems in artificial magnetic fields

We investigate the ground state properties of ultracold atoms with long range interactions trapped in a two leg ladder configuration in the presence of an artificial magnetic field. Using a Gross-Pitaevskii approach and a mean field Gutzwiller variational method, we explore both the weakly interacting and strongly interacting regime, respectively. We calculate the boundaries between the density-wave/supersolid and the Mott-insulator/superfluid phases as a function of magnetic flux and uncover regions of supersolidity. The mean-field results are confirmed by numerical simulations using a cluster mean field approach.