Abstract

Solitons, nonlinear particle-like excitations with inalterable properties (amplitude, shape, and velocity) as they propagate, are omnipresent in many branches of science—and in physics in particular. Flat-top solitons are a novel type of bright solitons that have not been well explored in pure nonlinear media. Here, a model of nonlinear Kerr (cubic) media of ultracold atoms with spatially modulated repulsive interactions is proposed and shown to support a vast variety of stable flat-top matter-wave solitons, including one-dimensional flat-top fundamental and multipole solitons, and two-dimensional flat-top fundamental and vortex solitons. We demonstrate that by varying the relevant physical parameters (nonlinearity coefficient and chemical potential), the ordinary bright (Gaussian) solitons can transform into the novel flat-top solitons. The (in)stability domains of the flat-top soliton families are checked by means of linear stability analysis and reconfirmed by direct numerical simulations. This model is generic in the contexts of nonlinear optics and Bose–Einstein condensates, which provides direct experimental access to observe the predicted solutions.

© 2019 Optical Society of America

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