Quantum phase transition in Bose-Fermi mixtures

We study a quantum Bose-Fermi mixture near a broad Feshbach resonance at zero temperature. Within a quantum field theoretical model, a two-step Gaussian approximation allows us to capture the main features of the quantum phase diagram. We show that a repulsive boson-boson interaction is necessary for thermodynamic stability. The quantum phase diagram is mapped in chemical-potential and density space, and both first- and second-order quantum phase transitions are found. We discuss typical characteristics of the first-order transition, such as hysteresis or a droplet formation of the condensate, which may be searched for experimentally.