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Abstract The Whitham modulation equations for the defocusing nonlinear Schrödinger (NLS) equation in two, three and higher spatial dimensions are derived using a two-phase ansatz for the periodic traveling wave solutions and by period-averaging the conservation laws of the NLS equation. The resulting Whitham modulation equations are written in vector form, which allows one to show that they preserve the rotational invariance of the NLS equation, as well as the invariance with respect to scaling and Galilean transformations, and to immediately generalize the calculations from two spatial dimensions to three. The transformation to Riemann-type variables is described in detail; the harmonic and soliton limits of the Whitham modulation equations are explicitly written down; and the reduction of the Whitham equations to those for the radial NLS equation is explicitly carried out. Finally, the extension of the theory to higher spatial dimensions is briefly outlined. The multidimensional NLS-Whitham equations obtained here may be used to study large amplitude wavetrains in a variety of applications including nonlinear photonics and matter waves. 

Abstract We characterize initial value problems for the defocusing Manakov system (coupled two-component nonlinear Schrödinger equation) with nonzero background and well-defined spatial parity symmetry (i.e., when each of the components of the solution is either even or odd), corresponding to boundary value problems on the half line with Dirichlet or Neumann boundary conditions at the origin. We identify the symmetries of the eigenfunctions arising from the spatial parity of the solution, and we determine the corresponding symmetries of the scattering data (reflection coefficients, discrete spectrum and norming constants). All parity induced symmetries are found to be more complicated than in the scalar (i.e., one-component) case. In particular, we show that the discrete eigenvalues giving rise to dark solitons arise in symmetric quartets, and those giving rise to dark–bright solitons in symmetric octets. We also characterize the differences between the purely even or purely odd case (in which both components are either even or odd functions of x ) and the ‘mixed parity’ cases (in which one component is even while the other is odd). Finally, we show how, in each case, the spatial symmetry yields a constraint on the possible existence of self-symmetric eigenvalues, corresponding to stationary solitons, and we study the resulting behavior of solutions.