Dynamics of bright soliton in a spin-orbit coupled spin-1 Bose-Einstein condensate*

We have investigated the dynamics of bright solitons in a spin-orbit coupled spin-1 Bose-Einstein condensate analytically and numerically. By using the hyperbolic sine function as the trial function to describe a plane wave bright soliton with a single finite momentum, we have derived the motion equations of soliton's spin and center of mass, and obtained its exact analytical solutions. Our results show that the spin-orbit coupling couples the soliton's spin with its center-of-mass motion, the spin oscillations induced by the exchange of atoms between components result in the periodical oscillation of center-of-mass, and the motion of center of mass of soliton can be viewed as a superposition of periodical and linear motions. Our analytical results have also been confirmed by the direct numerical simulations of Gross-Pitaevskii equations.

Automated summary

The dynamics of bright solitons in a spin-orbit coupled spin-1 Bose-Einstein condensate were investigated both analytically and numerically. It was found that the spin-orbit coupling couples the soliton's spin with its center-of-mass motion, resulting in periodical oscillation of the center-of-mass. The motion of the center-of-mass of the soliton can be viewed as a superposition of periodical and linear motions.