Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Log inSign up
Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Blog
Job Board
Q3AS

© 2026 Aqora Quantum S.A.S.

TermsPrivacyLegal Notice

New Journal of Physics

Bright matter wave solitons in Bose–Einstein condensates

Kevin E. Strecker, Guthrie B. Partridge, Andrew G. Truscott, Randall G. Hulet

Published Jun 16, 2003• 213 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We review recent experimental and theoretical work on the creation of bright matter wave solitons in Bose–Einstein condensates. In two recent experiments, solitons are formed from Bose–Einstein condensates of 7 Li by utilizing a Feshbach resonance to switch from repulsive to attractive interactions. The solitons are made to propagate in a one-dimensional potential formed by a focused laser beam. For repulsive interactions, the wavepacket undergoes dispersive wavepacket spreading, while for attractive interactions, localized solitons are formed. In our experiment, a multi-soliton train containing up to ten solitons is observed to propagate without spreading for a duration of 2 s. Adjacent solitons are found to interact repulsively, in agreement with a calculation based on the nonlinear Schrödinger equation assuming that the soliton train is formed with an alternating phase structure. The origin of this phase structure is not entirely clear.

DOI
10.1088/1367-2630/5/1/373

Related papers

DYNAMICS OF BRIGHT MATTER WAVE SOLITONS IN A BOSE–EINSTEIN CONDENSATE

F. Kh. Abdullaev, A. Gammal, A. M. Kamchatnov +1 more

Recent experimental and theoretical advances in the creation and description of bright matter wave solitons are reviewed. Several aspects are taken into account, including the physics of soliton train formation as the nonlinear Fresnel diffraction, soliton-soliton interactions, and propagation in the presence of inhomogeneities. The generation of stable bright solitons by means of Feshbach resonance techniques is also discussed.

International Journal of Modern Physics B•Sep 7, 2005•187 citations

Formation of matter-wave soliton trains by modulational instability

Randall G. Hulet, Jason Nguyen, De Luo

Solitons are localized wave packets whose dispersion is compensated by a nonlinearity. Solitons are observed in many wave settings including optics, fluids, plasmas, and matter-waves. Bright matter-wave solitons were first created by quenching the interactions in a quasi-one dimensional atomic Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) from repulsive to attractive. Under some conditions a train of up to 10 solitons was formed. Neighboring solitons were observed to repel one another, an effect that was attributed to an alternating π-0-π phase distribution. There has been a theoretical debate whether this phase structure is inherent to the formation of the train, or if it evolves through a series of mergers and annihilations between neighboring solitons that are in-phase, and hence attractive. This paper shows that the interaction quench initiates a modulation instability (MI) in which weak perturbations undergo a nonlinear amplification, resulting in their exponential growth. Results show that the number of solitons is consistent with the initial size of the condensate divided by 2πξ. Furthermore, once formed, there are few solitons lost to merger or annihilation collisions. From this, we conclude that the soliton train is created with an alternating phase structure, rather than evolving into one.

Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics Europe & European Quantum Electronics Conference (CLEO/Europe-EQEC)•Jun 1, 2017•5 citations

Formation of a Matter-Wave Bright Soliton

Lev Khaykovich, Florian Schreck, G. Ferrari +5 more

We report the production of matter-wave solitons in an ultracold lithium-7 gas. The effective interaction between atoms in a Bose-Einstein condensate is tuned with a Feshbach resonance from repulsive to attractive before release in a one-dimensional optical waveguide. Propagation of the soliton without dispersion over a macroscopic distance of 1.1 millimeter is observed. A simple theoretical model explains the stability region of the soliton. These matter-wave solitons open possibilities for future applications in coherent atom optics, atom interferometry, and atom transport.

arXiv:cond-mat/0205378•Science•May 17, 2002•1,588 citations

Controlled formation and reflection of a bright solitary matter-wave

A. L. Marchant, T. P. Billam, Timothy P. Wiles +3 more

Bright solitons are non-dispersive wave solutions, arising in a diverse range of nonlinear, one-dimensional systems, including atomic Bose-Einstein condensates with attractive interactions. In reality, cold-atom experiments can only approach the idealized one-dimensional limit necessary for the realization of true solitons. Nevertheless, it remains possible to create bright solitary waves, the three-dimensional analogue of solitons, which maintain many of the key properties of their one-dimensional counterparts. Such solitary waves offer many potential applications and provide a rich testing ground for theoretical treatments of many-body quantum systems. Here we report the controlled formation of a bright solitary matter-wave from a Bose-Einstein condensate of (85)Rb, which is observed to propagate over a distance of ∼1.1 mm in 150 ms with no observable dispersion. We demonstrate the reflection of a solitary wave from a repulsive Gaussian barrier and contrast this to the case of a repulsive condensate, in both cases finding excellent agreement with theoretical simulations using the three-dimensional Gross-Pitaevskii equation.

arXiv:1301.5759•Nature Communications•May 14, 2013•183 citations

Non-linear atom optics with bright matter wave soliton trains

Vanessa Y. F. Leung, Andrew G. Truscott, K. G. H. Baldwin

The results of one experiment (Strecker et. al.), is numerically simulated to demonstrate that a mean-field approach is capable of describing an attractive condensate in an area of nonlinear behavior such as soliton creation, and to investigate the soliton interactions by extending the experimental parameters. In the experiment being studied, the released BEC formed a train of multiple solitons which oscillated collectively in a weak harmonic potential for many cycles, each soliton kept apart from its neighbor by the alternating phase structure of the ensemble. This result suggests the possibility of designing a series of self-focussing, phase-engineered coherent matter pulses as the basis of future experiments in non-linear atom optics. Experimentally, a quasi-1D condensate was formed in a box-like potential with significantly tighter confinement in the transverse than the axial dimension. Manipulation of a Feshbach resonance rapidly tuned the scattering length of the atoms from positive to negative, resulting in a condensate which became attractive at, or shortly after, its release. Most of the unconfined atoms were ejected in a burst, leaving behind a small proportion of remnant atoms as solitons. These were allowed to evolve as they propagated along the axial potential of a far red-detuned laser field for a short time before being imaged.

European Quantum Electronics Conference (EQEC)•Jan 1, 2003•0 citations

Formation of Bright Matter-Wave Solitons during the Collapse of Attractive Bose-Einstein Condensates

Simon L. Cornish, Sarah T. Thompson, Carl Wieman

We observe bright matter-wave solitons form during the collapse of (85)Rb condensates in a three-dimensional (3D) magnetic trap. The collapse is induced by using a Feshbach resonance to suddenly switch the atomic interactions from repulsive to attractive. Remnant condensates containing several times the critical number of atoms for the onset of instability are observed to survive the collapse. Under these conditions a highly robust configuration of 3D solitons forms such that each soliton satisfies the condition for stability and neighboring solitons exhibit repulsive interactions.

arXiv:cond-mat/0601664•Physical Review Letters•May 3, 2006•496 citations
We review recent experimental and theoretical work on the creation of bright matter wave solitons in Bose–Einstein condensates. In two recent experiments, solitons are formed from Bose–Einstein condensates of 7 Li by utilizing a Feshbach resonance to switch from repulsive to attractive interactions. The solitons are made to propagate in a one-dimensional potential formed by a focused laser beam. For repulsive interactions, the wavepacket undergoes dispersive wavepacket spreading, while for attractive interactions, localized solitons are formed. In our experiment, a multi-soliton train containing up to ten solitons is observed to propagate without spreading for a duration of 2 s. Adjacent solitons are found to interact repulsively, in agreement with a calculation based on the nonlinear Schrödinger equation assuming that the soliton train is formed with an alternating phase structure. The origin of this phase structure is not entirely clear.
Solitons are localized wave packets whose dispersion is compensated by a nonlinearity. Solitons are observed in many wave settings including optics, fluids, plasmas, and matter-waves. Bright matter-wave solitons were first created by quenching the interactions in a quasi-one dimensional atomic Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) from repulsive to attractive. Under some conditions a train of up to 10 solitons was formed. Neighboring solitons were observed to repel one another, an effect that was attributed to an alternating π-0-π phase distribution. There has been a theoretical debate whether this phase structure is inherent to the formation of the train, or if it evolves through a series of mergers and annihilations between neighboring solitons that are in-phase, and hence attractive. This paper shows that the interaction quench initiates a modulation instability (MI) in which weak perturbations undergo a nonlinear amplification, resulting in their exponential growth. Results show that the number of solitons is consistent with the initial size of the condensate divided by 2πξ. Furthermore, once formed, there are few solitons lost to merger or annihilation collisions. From this, we conclude that the soliton train is created with an alternating phase structure, rather than evolving into one.
We report the production of matter-wave solitons in an ultracold lithium-7 gas. The effective interaction between atoms in a Bose-Einstein condensate is tuned with a Feshbach resonance from repulsive to attractive before release in a one-dimensional optical waveguide. Propagation of the soliton without dispersion over a macroscopic distance of 1.1 millimeter is observed. A simple theoretical model explains the stability region of the soliton. These matter-wave solitons open possibilities for future applications in coherent atom optics, atom interferometry, and atom transport.
Bright solitons are non-dispersive wave solutions, arising in a diverse range of nonlinear, one-dimensional systems, including atomic Bose-Einstein condensates with attractive interactions. In reality, cold-atom experiments can only approach the idealized one-dimensional limit necessary for the realization of true solitons. Nevertheless, it remains possible to create bright solitary waves, the three-dimensional analogue of solitons, which maintain many of the key properties of their one-dimensional counterparts. Such solitary waves offer many potential applications and provide a rich testing ground for theoretical treatments of many-body quantum systems. Here we report the controlled formation of a bright solitary matter-wave from a Bose-Einstein condensate of (85)Rb, which is observed to propagate over a distance of ∼1.1 mm in 150 ms with no observable dispersion. We demonstrate the reflection of a solitary wave from a repulsive Gaussian barrier and contrast this to the case of a repulsive condensate, in both cases finding excellent agreement with theoretical simulations using the three-dimensional Gross-Pitaevskii equation.
The results of one experiment (Strecker et. al.), is numerically simulated to demonstrate that a mean-field approach is capable of describing an attractive condensate in an area of nonlinear behavior such as soliton creation, and to investigate the soliton interactions by extending the experimental parameters. In the experiment being studied, the released BEC formed a train of multiple solitons which oscillated collectively in a weak harmonic potential for many cycles, each soliton kept apart from its neighbor by the alternating phase structure of the ensemble. This result suggests the possibility of designing a series of self-focussing, phase-engineered coherent matter pulses as the basis of future experiments in non-linear atom optics. Experimentally, a quasi-1D condensate was formed in a box-like potential with significantly tighter confinement in the transverse than the axial dimension. Manipulation of a Feshbach resonance rapidly tuned the scattering length of the atoms from positive to negative, resulting in a condensate which became attractive at, or shortly after, its release. Most of the unconfined atoms were ejected in a burst, leaving behind a small proportion of remnant atoms as solitons. These were allowed to evolve as they propagated along the axial potential of a far red-detuned laser field for a short time before being imaged.
We observe bright matter-wave solitons form during the collapse of (85)Rb condensates in a three-dimensional (3D) magnetic trap. The collapse is induced by using a Feshbach resonance to suddenly switch the atomic interactions from repulsive to attractive. Remnant condensates containing several times the critical number of atoms for the onset of instability are observed to survive the collapse. Under these conditions a highly robust configuration of 3D solitons forms such that each soliton satisfies the condition for stability and neighboring solitons exhibit repulsive interactions.