Bound states of dark solitons and vortices in trapped multidimensional Bose-Einstein condensates

We report on the existence and stability of multidimensional bound solitonic states in harmonically trapped scalar Bose-Einstein condensates. Their equilibrium separation, as a measure of the strength of the soliton- soliton or the solitonic vortex-vortex interaction, is provided for varying chemical potential μ. Static bound dark solitons are shown to be dynamically stable in elongated condensates within a range of intermediate (repulsive) interparticle-interaction strength. Beyond this range the snaking instability manifests during the time evolution of the planar solitons and produces the decay into nonstationary vortex states. A subsequent dynamical recurrence of solitons and vortices can be observed at low μ. At equilibrium, the bifurcations of bound dark solitons are bound solitonic vortices. Among them, both two-open and two-ring vortex lines are demonstrated to exist with both counter- and co-rotating steady velocity fields. The latter flow configurations evolve, for high chemical potential, into a stationary three-dimensional (3D)-chain-shaped vortex and a three vortex-antivortex-vortex ring sequence that arrest the otherwise increasing angular or linear momentum respectively. As a feature common to the bifurcated families of vortex states, their excitation spectra present unstable modes with associated oscillatory dynamics. In spite of this, the family of two-open counter-rotating vortices support dynamically stable 3D states.