Tripod and Lambda configurations in simulation of gauge potentials for ultracold atoms

It is known that gauge potentials/spin-orbit couplings can be simulated for ultracold atoms through their interaction with laser fields. Tripod and Lambda (Λ) are two typical configurations of atom–field interaction in the simulations. We find that there is a similarity between the two configurations if we parametrize Rabi frequencies properly. Based on the similarity, we can transform a gauge potential/spin-orbit coupling simulation scheme in the tripod configuration into a scheme in the Λ configuration.