Post-soliton quantum mechanics

Tullio A. Minelli, A. Pascolini

Yu. P. Rybakov, T. F. Kamalov

Omer Paz, Yonatan Ben-Haim, Shay Rakia +1 more

One of the grand open problems of modern physics is the unification of Einstein’s general relativity and quantum mechanics. This challenge has been approached by the greatest physicists but there is still no complete theory and experimental evidence remains out of reach. The Newton–Schrödinger equation (NSE) offers insight into this puzzle, as it describes a quantum wavefunction under self-gravity dynamics. Having been studied theoretically for decades, optical experiment of this nonlinear model was demonstrated only in 2015. Although the NSE can be generalized to post-Newtonian gravity approximating general relativity, all experiments simulating nonlinear gravity so far have been limited to Newtonian gravity. Here we present experimental emulation of post-Newtonian dynamics by probing a new physical regime of nonlinearity that mimics larger masses in gravity. We find soliton solutions of the post-Newtonian–Schrödinger equations, distinct from their Newtonian counterparts and demonstrate them experimentally. We observe rich beam evolution requiring previously unconsidered nonlinear terms, thereby opening up new experimental capabilities for simulating wavefunction dynamics in the settings of general relativity. An optical emulation experiment of a quantum wave function dynamics under self-induced post Newtonian gravitational potential is presented, including observation of solitons of this system and rich beam evolution due to high-order nonlinear effects.

Rejish Nath, P. Pedri, Luis Santos

The partially attractive character of the dipole-dipole interaction leads to phonon instability in dipolar Bose-Einstein condensates, which is followed by collapse in 3D geometries. We show that in 2D, the nature of the post-instability dynamics is fundamentally different, due to the stabilization of 2D solitons. As a result, a transient gas of attractive solitons is formed, and collapse may be avoided. In the presence of an harmonic trap, the post-instability dynamics is characterized by a transient pattern formation followed by the creation of stable 2D solitons. This dynamics should be observable in ongoing experiments, allowing for the creation of stable 2D solitons for the first time ever in quantum gases.

Gilbert Reinisch

Hermann G. Kümmel

Starting from the Gaussian-variational approximation the state of the single sine-Gordon soliton is constructed using the coupled cluster method. The quantum contributions to the soliton mass and those to the space dependence of the soliton are computed and found to be non-negligible. If the coupling constant ${\ensuremath{\beta}}^{2}$ approaches the critical value $4\ensuremath{\pi}$ the mass becomes classical, but in other respects the soliton remains a quantum object.