Hong-Ou-Mandel-like two-droplet correlations

Abstract: We present a numerical study of two-droplet pair correlations for in-phase droplets walking on a vibrating bath. Two such walkers are launched towards a common origin. As they approach, their carrier waves may overlap and the droplets have a non-zero probability of forming a two-droplet bound state. The likelihood of such pairing is quantified by measuring the probability of finding the droplets in a bound state at late times. Three generic types of two-droplet correlations are observed: promenading, orbiting and chasing pair of walkers. For certain parameters, the droplets may become correlated for certain initial path differences and remain uncorrelated for others, while in other cases the droplets may never produce droplet pairs. These observations pave the way for further studies of strongly correlated many-droplet behaviors in the hydrodynamical quantum analogs of bouncing and walking droplets.