Atom number distributions after quantum quenches in lattice-confined spinor gases

We present an experimental study on atom number distributions of lattice-confined spinor gases after well-engineered quantum quenches across superfluid to Mott insulator phase transitions. As the lattice quench speed decreases, our data reveal that the fraction of atoms in even Mott lobes initially has a large value and then quickly drops before slowly approaching the distributions predicted for adiabatic ramps. This work demonstrates a potential method of maximizing the fraction of atoms in even Mott lobes which, among other things, may enable future works to optimize the production of spin singlets in lattice confined ultracold atoms.