Observation of lump solitons in a photon fluid

Observation of lump solitons in a photon fluid | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Observation of lump solitons in a photon fluid Ludovica Dieli, Davide Pierangeli, Fabio Barionio, Stefano Trillo, and 1 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-5936260/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Solitons are the cornerstone of nonlinear physics. The integrability of nonlinear equations is the basis of this universal concept. However, most multidimensional systems lack of integrability, a fundamental limitation that challenges the existence of solitons in high dimensions. A groundbreaking exception would be the lump soliton, a two-dimensional solution of the Kadomtsev-Petviashvili (KP) equation with the unique property of propagating unperturbed in three-dimensional space. Due to the difficulty of implementing the KP dynamics in any physical system, lump solitons have never been observed. Here, we report the first experimental observation of a lump soliton. The lump forms in a two-dimensional photon fluid experiencing a defocusing nonlinearity in a photorefractive crystal. We tailor the input field shape and the nonlinearity to realize the hydrodynamic integrable regime of the KP equation. The lump emerges as a self-localized wave that propagates unaltered with a transverse velocity. We confirm its integrable nature by reporting, for the first time, the elastic collision of solitons in two dimensions. As the first experimental evidence of integrable solitons in high dimension, our observation paves the way for a new era in the study of nonlinear systems. Physical sciences/Optics and photonics/Optical physics/Solitons Physical sciences/Physics/Fluid dynamics Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Supplementary Files supplementarymaterial.pdf Supplementary Material Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-5936260","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":417895918,"identity":"1a6d0149-2ed5-47f8-8cf0-281668a61a8f","order_by":0,"name":"Ludovica 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The integrability of nonlinear equations is the basis of this universal concept. However, most multidimensional systems lack of integrability, a fundamental limitation that challenges the existence of solitons in high dimensions. A groundbreaking exception would be the lump soliton, a two-dimensional solution of the Kadomtsev-Petviashvili (KP) equation with the unique property of propagating unperturbed in three-dimensional space.\r\nDue to the difficulty of implementing the KP dynamics in any physical system,\r\nlump solitons have never been observed. Here, we report the first experimental observation of a lump soliton. The lump forms in a two-dimensional photon fluid experiencing a defocusing nonlinearity in a photorefractive crystal. We tailor the input field shape and the nonlinearity to realize the hydrodynamic integrable regime of the KP equation.\r\nThe lump emerges as a self-localized wave that propagates unaltered with a transverse velocity. We confirm its integrable nature by reporting, for the first time, the elastic collision of solitons in two dimensions. \r\nAs the first experimental evidence of integrable solitons in high dimension, \r\nour observation paves the way for a new era in the study of nonlinear systems.","manuscriptTitle":"Observation of lump solitons in a photon fluid","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-02-20 04:52:24","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-5936260/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"6c4519b6-af65-46d1-8283-ef746fb2c0e8","owner":[],"postedDate":"February 20th, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[{"id":44554157,"name":"Physical sciences/Optics and photonics/Optical physics/Solitons"},{"id":44554158,"name":"Physical sciences/Physics/Fluid dynamics"}],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2025-04-25T14:56:13+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2025-02-20 04:52:24","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-5936260","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-5936260","identity":"rs-5936260","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"8U1c8b4HqxoKbykW_rLl7","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}