Exact exact solutions of the Gross-Pitaevskii equation for stable vortex modes

Abstract

We construct exact solutions of the Gross-Pitaevskii equation for solitary vortices, and approximate ones for fundamental solitons, in 2D models of Bose-Einstein condensates with a spatially modulated nonlinearity of either sign and a harmonic trapping potential. The number of vortex-soliton (VS) modes is determined by the discrete energy spectrum of a related linear Schrödinger equation. The VS families in the system with the attractive and repulsive nonlinearity are mutually complementary. \emph{% Stable} VSs with vorticity $S\geq 2$ and those corresponding to higher-order radial states are reported for the first time, in the case of the attraction and repulsion, respectively.

5 pages, 6 figures, to appear in Phys. Rev. A