Dark-dark-soliton dynamics in two density-coupled Bose-Einstein condensates

Abstract: We study the 1D dynamics of dark-dark solitons in the miscible regime of two density-coupled Bose-Einstein condensates having repulsive interparticle interactions within each condensate ($g>0$). By using an adiabatic perturbation theory in the parameter $g_{12}/{g}$, we show that, contrary to the case of two solitons in scalar condensates, the interactions between solitons are attractive when the interparticle interactions between condensates are repulsive $g_{12}>0$. As a result, the relative motion of dark solitons with equal chemical potential $\mu$ is well approximated by harmonic oscillations of angular frequency $w_r=(\mu/\hbar)\sqrt{({8}/{15}){g_{12}}/{g}}$. We also show that in finite systems, the resonance of this anomalous excitation mode with the spin density mode of lowest energy gives rise to alternating dynamical instability and stability fringes as a function of the perturbative parameter. In the presence of harmonic trapping (with angular frequency $\Omega$) the solitons are driven by the superposition of two harmonic motions at a frequency given by $w^2=(\Omega/\sqrt{2})^2+w_r^2$. When $g_{12}<0$, these two oscillators compete to give rise to an overall effective potential that can be either single well or double well through a pitchfork bifurcation. All our theoretical results are compared with numerical solutions of the Gross-Pitaevskii equation for the dynamics and the Bogoliubov equations for the linear stability. A good agreement is found between them.