<mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><mml:mi>d</mml:mi></mml:math>-Wave Collapse and Explosion of a Dipolar Bose-Einstein Condensate

TLDR

The study examines collapse dynamics of a dipolar 52Cr Bose–Einstein condensate when the s‑wave scattering length falls below its critical value. The collapse triggers an anisotropic d‑wave explosion, abrupt atom loss, and the formation of two counter‑circulating vortex rings, matching 3D Gross–Pitaevskii simulations.

Abstract

We investigate the collapse dynamics of a dipolar condensate of $^{52}\mathrm{Cr}$ atoms when the $s$-wave scattering length characterizing the contact interaction is reduced below a critical value. A complex dynamics, involving an anisotropic, $d$-wave symmetric explosion of the condensate, is observed. The atom number decreases abruptly during the collapse. We find good agreement between our experimental results and those of a numerical simulation of the three-dimensional Gross-Pitaevskii equation, including contact and dipolar interactions as well as three-body losses. The simulation indicates that the collapse induces the formation of two vortex rings with opposite circulations.