abstract
- We derive an exact solution to the Thomas-Fermi equation for a Bose-Einstein condensate which has dipole-dipole interactions as well as the usual s-wave contact interaction, in a harmonic trap. Remarkably, despite the non-local anisotropic nature of the dipolar interaction the solution is an inverted parabola, as in the pure s-wave case, but with a different aspect ratio. Various properties such as electrostriction and stability are discussed.