Interactions and Reconnections of Four-Dimensional Quantum Vortices

TL;DR

This paper investigates the complex interactions and reconnections of four-dimensional quantum vortices, revealing richer behaviors than in three dimensions, including stable vortex surfaces and quasi-reversible reconnections, through real-time numerical simulations.

Contribution

It introduces the first detailed study of 4D quantum vortex dynamics, uncovering novel phenomena like stable vortex intersections and energy-preserving reconnections.

Findings

Discovery of stable intersecting vortex surfaces in 4D

Observation of reconnections with minimal energy dissipation

Identification of quasi-reversible vortex dynamics

Abstract

Interactions and reconnections of vortices are fundamental in many areas of physics, including classical and quantum fluids where they are central to understanding phenomena such as turbulence. In three-dimensional (3D) superfluids, quantum vortices are one-dimensional (1D) filaments that can intersect, reconnect, and recoil with irreversible dynamics described by near-universal scaling laws. We explore quantum-vortex reconnections in a four-dimensional (4D) superfluid, where a vortex is a two-dimensional (2D) surface. Using real-time numerical simulations, we find much richer behaviour than in 3D, including stable intersecting vortex surfaces which do not reconnect, and unusual vortex reconnections which occur without significant energy dissipation, suggesting quasi-reversible dynamics. Our work raises many interesting questions about vortex physics in extra-dimensional systems, and may be extended in the future to more realistic experimental settings where the fourth dimension is simulated with techniques such as synthetic dimensions.