Observation of Hybrid Soliton Vortex-Ring Structures in Bose-Einstein Condensates

Abstract

We present the experimental discovery of compound structures comprising solitons and vortex rings in Bose-Einstein condensates. We examine both their creation via soliton-vortex collisions and their subsequent development, which is largely governed by the dynamics of interacting vortex rings. A theoretical model in three-dimensional cylindrical symmetry is also presented.