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Unstable Halo States: One-Halo Simulation
In addition to the qualitatively similar Gaussian-like (approximately
bell-curve shaped) solitary waves discussed so far, the governing equation
also admits so-called "halo states" comprised of a bright central ball
surrounded by a number of spherical shells. In analogy with the inverted
pendulum mentioned earlier, these states are found to be unstable to
propagation, the smallest amount of noise tickling the solution and causing
it to decay into a number of "normal" light bullets. This first simulation
depicts the propagation of the one-halo state. We have performed a
somewhat complicated mathematical analysis that allows us to understand
why the system initially decays into the tube and ball structure.
In the final image, the front-most light bullet is seen to exit
the computational mesh and reappear at the back wall.
<424 kb animation>
<130 kb animation>
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Email comments to dEdmundson@bigfoot.com.
