  We study the effects of quasiparticle interactions in a quasi-two dimensional
(quasi-2D), zero-temperature Bose-Einstein condensate of dipolar atoms, which
can exhibit a roton-maxon feature in its quasiparticle spectrum. Our focus is
the Beliaev damping process, in which a quasiparticle collides with the
condensate and resonantly decays into a pair of quasiparticles. Remarkably, the
rate for this process exhibits a highly non-trivial dependence on the
quasiparticle momentum and the dipolar interaction strength. For weak
interactions, the low energy phonons experience no damping, and the higher
energy quasiparticles undergo anomalously weak damping. In contrast, the
Beliaev damping rates become anomalously large for stronger dipolar
interactions, as rotons become energetically accessible as final states.
Further, we find a qualitative anisotropy in the damping rates when the dipoles
are tilted off the axis of symmetry. Our study reveals the unconventional
nature of Beliaev damping in dipolar condensates, and has important
implications for ongoing studies of equilibrium and non-equilibrium dynamics in
these systems.
