Experimental observation of dark solitons on the surface of water

Amin Chabchoub (1) , Olivier Kimmoun (2) , Hubert Branger (2) , Norbert Hoffmann (1) , D. Proment (3) , M. Onorato (4) , Nail Akhmediev (5)

1 HUT - Hamburg University
2 IRPHE - Institut de Recherche sur les Phénomènes Hors Equilibre
3 UEA - University of East Anglia [Norwich]
4 Dipartimento di Fisica [Torino]
5 Res Sch Phys Sci & Engn, Opt Sci Grp

We present the first ever observation of dark solitons on the surface of water. It takes the form of an amplitude drop of the carrier wave which does not change shape in propagation. The shape and width of the soliton depend on the water depth, carrier frequency, and the amplitude of the background wave. The experimental data taken in a water tank show an excellent agreement with the theory. These results may improve our understanding of the nonlinear dynamics of water waves at finite depths.

Mots clés: soliton; water waves; experiments; wave tank; non linear waves

Domaines: Mécanique des fluides [physics.class-ph]; Mécanique des fluides [physics.class-ph]; Océan, Atmosphère

Amin Chabchoub, Olivier Kimmoun, Hubert Branger, Norbert Hoffmann, D. Proment, et al.. Experimental observation of dark solitons on the surface of water. Physical Review Letters, 2013, 110 (12), pp.124101. ⟨10.1103/PhysRevLett.110.124101⟩. ⟨hal-00850819⟩