Scattering of two-dimensional solitons in dipolar Bose-Einstein condensates

TL;DR

This paper investigates the unique scattering behaviors of two-dimensional dipolar Bose-Einstein condensate solitons, revealing nonlocal interlayer effects, inelastic fusion, resonances, and novel spiraling phenomena, with implications for current experiments.

Contribution

It introduces the concept of nonlocal interlayer interactions in dipolar BECs, leading to new scattering dynamics and phenomena not observed in short-range interaction systems.

Findings

Interlayer interactions induce effective molecular potentials.

Discovery of inelastic fusion and resonance phenomena.

Observation of inelastic spiraling in 2D matter-wave solitons.

Abstract

We analyze the scattering of bright solitons in dipolar Bose-Einstein condensates placed in unconnected layers. Whereas for short-range interactions unconnected layers are independent, a remarkable consequence of the dipole interaction is the appearance of novel nonlocal interlayer effects. In particular, we show that the interlayer interaction leads to an effective molecular potential between disconnected solitons, inducing a complex scattering physics between them, which includes inelastic fusion into soliton-molecules, and strong symmetric and asymmetric inelastic resonances. In addition, a fundamentally new 2D scattering scenario in matter-wave solitons is possible, in which inelastic spiraling occurs, resembling phenomena in photorrefractive materials. Finally, we consider the scattering of unconnected 1D solitons and discuss the feasibility in current on going experiments.