Coupled-mode envelope solitary waves in a pair of cubic Schrödinger equations with cross modulation: Analytical solution and collisions with application to Rossby waves

Coupled-Nonlinear Schrödinger equations, linked by cross modulation terms, arise in both nonlinear optics and in Rossby waves in the atmosphere and ocean. In this paper, we derive exact, analytic solutions for the “bright” coupled-mode soliton, for which the envelope in each mode asymptotes to zero at spatial infinity, and for its spatially periodic generalization. We then numerically study the collisions of the coupled-mode solitary wave both with a conventional envelope soliton, confined to a single mode, and also with a second coupled-mode solitary wave. The collisions are sensitive to both the relative speed and phase of the solitons. In some parameter ranges, the collisions are nearly elastic, but in others, one or both solitons fission.