Three coaxial quantized vortex rings in a Bose-Einstein condensate exhibit aperiodic leapfrogging dynamics. It is found that such circular vortex rings are dynamically unstable against deformation breaking axial rotational symmetry. The dynamics of the system is analyzed using the Gross-Pitaevskii and vortex-filament models. The dependence of the instability on the initial arrangement of the vortex rings is investigated. The system is found to be significantly unstable for a specific configuration of the three vortex rings.
Three coaxial quantized vortex rings in a Bose-Einstein condensate exhibit aperiodic leapfrogging dynamics. It is found that such circular vortex rings are dynamically unstable against deformation breaking axial rotational symmetry. The dynamics of the system is analyzed using the Gross-Pitaevskii and vortex-filament models. The dependence of the instability on the initial arrangement of the vortex rings is investigated. The system is found to be significantly unstable for a specific configuration of the three vortex rings.
The leapfrogging of coaxial vortex rings is a famous effect which has been noticed since the times of Helmholtz. Recent advances in ultra-cold atomic gases show that the effect can now be studied in quantum fluids. The strong confinement which characterises these systems motivates the study of leapfrogging of vortices within narrow channels. Using the two-dimensional point vortex model, we show that in the constrained geometry of a two-dimensional channel the dynamics is richer than in an unbounded domain: alongside the known regimes of standard leapfrogging and the absence of it, we identify new regimes of image-driven leapfrogging and periodic orbits. Moreover, by solving the Gross–Pitaevskii equation for a Bose–Einstein condensate, we show that all four regimes exist for quantum vortices too. Finally, we discuss the differences between classical and quantum vortex leapfrogging which appear when the quantum healing length becomes significant compared to the vortex separation or the channel size, and when, due to high velocity, compressibility effects in the condensate becomes significant.
The dynamics of a phase-separated two-component Bose-Einstein condensate are investigated, in which a bubble of one component moves through the other component. Numerical simulations of the Gross-Pitaevskii equation reveal a variety of dynamics associated with the creation of quantized vortices. In two dimensions, a circular bubble deforms into an ellipse and splits into fragments with vortices, which undergo the Magnus effect. The B\'enard--von K\'arm\'an vortex street is also generated. In three dimensions, a spherical bubble deforms into toruses with vortex rings. When two rings are formed, they exhibit leapfrogging dynamics.
The dynamical instabilities and ensuing dynamics of singly and doubly quantized vortex states of Bose-Einstein condensates with attractive interactions are investigated using full three-dimensional numerical simulations of the Gross-Pitaevskii equation. With increasing the strength of attractive interactions, a series of dynamical instabilities such as quadrupole, dipole, octupole, and monopole instabilities emerge. The most prominent instability depends on the strength of interactions, the geometry of the trapping potential, and deviations from the axisymmetry due to external perturbations. Singly quantized vortices split into two clusters and subsequently undergo split-merge cycles in a pancake-shaped trap, whereas the split fragments immediately collapse in a spherical trap. Doubly quantized vortices are always unstable to disintegration of the vortex core. If we suddenly change the strength of interaction to within a certain range, the vortex splits into three clusters, and one of the clusters collapses after a few split-merge cycles. The vortex split can be observed using a current experimental setup of Leanhardt et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 89, 190403 (2002)].
We study vortex ring solutions of the Gross-Pitaevskii equation for Bose-Einstein condensates confined in toroidal traps. Analogously to the Feynman-Onsager ansatz for a single vortex line, we assume a condensate wavefunction that describes a quantized vortex ring. This leads to a modified Gross-Pitaevskii equation that incorporates vortex ring solutions. By numerically solving this equation, we have obtained the density profiles and the vortex core structure. We have also calculated the nucleation energy of a vortex ring, and have analyzed its dependence on the ring position. Finally, a qualitative description of the vortex ring dynamics is presented.
We present a numerical method for generating vortex rings in Bose-Einstein condensates confined in axially symmetric traps. The vortex ring is generated using the line-source approximation for the vorticity, i.e., the curl of the superfluid velocity field is different from zero only on a circumference of a given radius located on a plane perpendicular to the symmetry axis and coaxial with it. The particle density is obtained by solving a modified Gross-Pitaevskii equation that incorporates the effect of the velocity field. We discuss the appearance of density profiles, the vortex core structure, and the vortex nucleation energy, i.e., the energy difference between vortical and ground-state configurations. This is used to present a qualitative description of the vortex dynamics.
We investigate dynamics of a vortex ring encountering a coaxial spherical obstacle in Bose-Einstein condensates. For a perfect spherical obstacle, the vortex ring would first expand and then shrink when passing over the obstacle. For the case of a periodically modified spherical obstacle, the circular vortex ring is deformed to be gear shaped during the passing-over process. This gear-shaped vortex ring can evolve into a helical Kelvin-wave state, or split into several smaller vortex rings. In the latter situation, these split vortex rings would travel some distances forwards and then reconnect with each other, forming one new forward-moving Kelvin wave, or two Kelvin waves of different sizes, with the bigger one moving forwards and the smaller one moving backwards.