Dynamical stability of a doubly quantized vortex in a three-dimensional condensate

Abstract

The Bogoliubov equations are solved for a three-dimensional Bose-Einstein condensate containing a doubly quantized vortex, trapped in a harmonic potential. Complex frequencies, signifying dynamical instability, are found for certain ranges of parameter values. The existence of alternating windows of stability and instability, respectively, is explained qualitatively and quantitatively using variational calculus and direct numerical solution. It is seen that the windows of stability are much smaller for a cigar shaped condensate than for a pancake shaped one, which is consistent with the findings of recent experiments.