Dynamics of matter solitons in weakly modulated optical lattices

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates how smooth variations in optical lattice parameters can control matter solitons' motion in Bose-Einstein condensates, enabling acceleration, oscillation, and interaction with defects.

Contribution

It introduces a method to manage matter solitons via lattice modulations using the effective mass approach, considering various defect configurations.

Findings

Lattice modulations induce soliton acceleration and oscillation.

Defects can simulate attractive and repulsive interactions.

Effective mass approach explains soliton dynamics in modulated lattices.

Abstract

It is shown that matter solitons can be effectively managed by means of smooth variations of parameters of optical lattices in which the condensate is loaded. The phenomenon is based on the effect of lattice modulations on the carrier wave transporting the soliton and that is why is well understood in terms of the effective mass approach, where a particular spatial configuration of the band structure is of primary importance. Linear, parabolic, and spatially localized modulations are considered as the case examples. It is shown that these defects can originate accelerating and oscillating motion of matter solitons as well as simulate soliton interaction with attractive and repulsive defects.