Drift bifurcation of dissipative solitons in barrier gas discharge

In an ac-driven planar barrier gas-discharge system we observe solitary structures in the luminescence radiation density and the related current distribution that exhibit rather irregular motion. Using a stochastic data analysis, it can be demonstrated that two types of trajectories can be found: the first type originates from a uniform motion which is superimposed with noise, whereas the latter type is purely noise driven. The bifurcation between the two types of motion can be observed when changing the external driving voltage.