Soliton dynamics in Bose-Einstein condensates

Summary form only given. Bose-Einstein condensates (BEC) of weakly interacting gases allow for the new regime of nonlinear atom optics. Of special interest are macroscopically excited states like dark solitons or vortices. Solitons, as particle like excitations of matter wave fields, provide a link from condensate physics to fluid mechanics, nonlinear optics and fundamental particle physics. Dark solitons in matter waves are characterized by a local density minimum and, a steep phase gradient of the wavefunction at the position of the minimum. We report on experimental and theoretical investigation of dark solitons in BECs of /sup 87/Rb which are produced by the method of phase imprinting. A highly anisotropic confining potential allows us to be close to the (quasi) 1D situation where dark solitons are expected to be dynamically stable. By monitoring the evolution of the density profile we observe the evolution of density minima travelling at a smaller velocity than the speed of sound. By comparison to analytical and numerical solutions of the 3D Gross-Pitaevskii equation for our experimental conditions we identify these density minima to be moving dark solitons. We have studied in detail the creation and the dynamics of dark solitons as a function of evolution time and imprinted phase.