  When unstable Dp-branes in type II string theory are placed in a B-field, the
resulting tachyonic world-volume theory becomes noncommutative. We argue that
for large noncommutativity parameter, condensation of the tachyon as a
noncommutative soliton leads to new decay modes of the Dp-brane into
(p-2)-brane configurations, which we interpret as suitably smeared BPS
D(p-1)-branes. Some of these configurations are metastable. We discuss various
generalizations of this decay process.
