Finite-temperature vortex dynamics in Bose-Einstein condensates

We study the dynamics of a vortex in an atomic Bose-condensed gas at finite temperature within the Zaremba-Nikuni-Griffin formalism. In a harmonically trapped pancake-shaped condensate, an off-centered vortex is known to decay by spiraling out toward the edge of the condensate. We quantify the dependence of this decay on temperature, atomic collisions, and thermal cloud rotation. Near the trap center where the density varies slowly, we show that our numerical results agree with the predictions of the Hall-Vinen phenomenological friction force model used to describe quantized vorticity in superfluid systems. Our result thus clarifies the microscopic origin of the friction and provides an ab initio determination of its value.