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Optics and Spectroscopy

On the velocity of propagation of a frequency-modulated wave packet in a dispersive absorbing medium

Nikolai S. Bukhman

Published Jul 1, 2004• 9 citations
Publisher

Abstract

It is shown that the velocity of propagation of a frequency-modulated wave packet through a strongly dispersive absorbing medium can be significantly different from (either higher or lower than) that of a non-frequency-modulated wave packet. This difference is attributed to the absorption dispersion of the medium. The easiest way to take the absorption dispersion into account is to use the formalism of the complex group velocity of a wave packet. This paper considers the propagation of a linear frequency-modulated wave packet, whose carrier frequency is close to the frequency of a spectral absorption line of the medium.

DOI
10.1134/1.1781291

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It is shown that the velocity of propagation of a frequency-modulated wave packet through a strongly dispersive absorbing medium can be significantly different from (either higher or lower than) that of a non-frequency-modulated wave packet. This difference is attributed to the absorption dispersion of the medium. The easiest way to take the absorption dispersion into account is to use the formalism of the complex group velocity of a wave packet. This paper considers the propagation of a linear frequency-modulated wave packet, whose carrier frequency is close to the frequency of a spectral absorption line of the medium.
It is shown that in a selectively absorbing medium, the propagation velocity of a linearly frequency-modulated signal differs from its group velocity and depends on its modulation index, and the "modulation" addition to the group delay time reverses its sign when the sign of the modulation index changes. As a result, the propagation velocity of a linearly frequency-modulated signal can be superluminal at its subluminal group velocity and superluminal at its subluminal group velocity. When the center of the spectral line falls within the spectrum of a linearly frequency–modulated signal, a single linearly frequency-modulated signal is divided into two signals, one of which propagates at a speed higher than the group velocity (possibly higher than the vacuum light velocity), and the second is lower than the group velocity. The difference in the propagation speed of linearly frequency-modulated signals differing in the sign of the modulation index can lead to the fact that the initially amplitude-modulated signal, when propagating in a selectively absorbing medium, can be divided into several signals propagating at different speeds, and these signals, under certain conditions, can also be purely amplitude-modulated. Obviously, these effects can occur not only when a signal propagates in a selectively absorbing medium, but also when it is reflected from a selectively absorbing surface and propagated through linear filters in circuit theory.
Propagation of a Gaussian wave packet in an absorbing medium is examined in order to shed light on the physical basis of group velocity which exhibits a singular behavior. It is found that the velocity of the wave packet, defined as the traveling distance of the peak amplitude divided by its flight time, decreases in the absorption range of frequency, although the group velocity becomes infinite in the same range. Fast pulse propagation, which was observed by Chu and Wong and is characterized by a packet velocity faster than the light velocity, turns out to be a characteristic in the early stage of the flight and is understood in terms of packet distortion due to damping of Fourier-component waves in an anomalous dispersion region. It also turns out that slow pulse propagation characterized by a packet velocity less than the light velocity appears for long traveling distance. The results provided a unified picture of wave-packet propagation in an absorbing medium.
It is shown that, when a narrow-band signal with a non-Gaussian envelope propagates in a medium with a strong dispersion, the signal envelope being distorted due to the dispersion of the gain (or) absorption in the medium. Nevertheless, the amplitude-modulated signal having a symmetric (even) intensity envelope remains the same. The propagation velocity of the `middle point' (i.e., the symmetry centre) of the signal coincides with the real group velocity of the wave with a given carrier frequency in the medium and can be subluminal, superluminal or negative. Therefore, the concept of a real group velocity (including the superluminal or negative velocity) is also applicable in media with a strong dispersion of the gain (or absorption).
It is shown that there are no dispersing media with «subluminal only» or «superluminal only» real group velocity – if in some medium at some frequencies the real group velocity is subluminal, then in the same medium there are necessarily frequencies at which the real group velocity is superluminal. Conversely, if a medium has frequencies with a superluminal group velocity, then it necessarily has frequencies with a subluminal group velocity. In other words, there is a necessary connection between subluminal and superluminal group velocity – if any medium is capable of generating subluminal group velocity, then the same medium is capable of generating superluminal group velocity. Similarly, there are no media with «only positive» or «only negative» imaginary part of the complex group velocity – if at some frequencies the imaginary part of the group velocity is positive, then at other frequencies in the same medium it is negative and vice versa. This means that if there is a carrier frequency in the medium at which some linearly frequency-modulated signal propagates at a speed lower than the group speed, then in the same medium there is necessarily a carrier frequency at which the same signal will propagate at a speed higher than the group speed and vice versa.
Propagation of a short quasi-monochromatic electromagnetic (light or radio) signal (wave packet) is considered. The carrier frequency of the signal is close to the frequency of the absorption spectral line (or group of lines) of a medium, and the spectrum width is large relative to the width of this spectral line (or group of lines). Analytic formulas for the temporal dependence of the signal are derived and numerically confirmed for paths of various lengths. It is shown that the signal is substantially distorted long before it noticeably decays owing to absorption. The signal’s temporal dependence turns out to be rather universal with respect to the form factor of the spectral line, the optical thickness of the substance layer, and the initial temporal dependence of the signal.