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Applied Physics Letters

Optical bistability at a nonlinear interface

P. W. E. Smith, J.P. Hermann, W. J. Tomlinson, P. J. Maloney

Published Dec 1, 1979• 121 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Under suitable conditions, the boundary between a linear and a nonlinear (Kerr effect) medium should have a reflection coefficient which exhibits hysteresis as a function of optical intensity. We present the first experimental evidence of this effect. Experiments were performed using ∼1-ns ruby laser pulses incident on a glass-CS2 boundary.

DOI
10.1063/1.91001

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Applied Physics Letters•Jan 15, 1981•14 citations
Under suitable conditions, the boundary between a linear and a nonlinear (Kerr effect) medium should have a reflection coefficient which exhibits hysteresis as a function of optical intensity. We present the first experimental evidence of this effect. Experiments were performed using ∼1-ns ruby laser pulses incident on a glass-CS2 boundary.
In the last chapter, we examined the effect of cubic nonlinearity on selfrefraction of an optical beam. We have also seen that the presence of a quadratic nonlinearity can also contribute to change in the profile of a Gaussian beam in a crystal. In this chapter we will see how the effect of nonlinearity, alongwith the proper feedback, can give rise to optical bistability and hysteresis. This is not unexpected as hysteresis and bistability are also observed in nonlinear electronic circuits with feedback, such as in the Schmitt trigger, as well as in hybrid optical devices, such as an acoustooptic device with feedback (Banerjee and Poon, 1991). In what follows, we will examine two different types of optically bistable devices based on optical nonlinearities. The first is a nonlinear ring resonator comprising a two-level gain medium as the nonlinear element. We will treat both absorptive and dispersive bistability. Absorptive bistability is the case when the incident optical frequency is close to or equal to the transition frequency of the atoms from one level to another. In this case, the absorption coefficient becomes a nonlinear function of the incident intensity. On the other hand, if the frequencies are far apart, the medium behaves like a Kerr-type material and the system exhibits what is called dispersive bistability. In this case the material can be modeled by an effective n2 or v (3), meaning that the refractive index becomes a nonlinear function of the optical intensity. The second configurationwewill examine is a linear-nonlinear interface. In this case, the interface provides the feedback due to refractive index mismatch. In fact, the reflection coefficient (as well as the transmission coefficient) is modified due to the nonlinearity, which, as we shall see later, is responsible for demonstrating optical switching and bistability.
A rigorous solution is given in the plane-wave approximation for the boundary problem of light reflection from the interface between an isotropic medium and a photorefractive crystal with drift-diffusion nonlinearity. The possibility of realizing hysteresis reflection or optical bistability in the system under certain conditions is shown. Analytical expressions are obtained that describe the hysteresis behavior of reflectivity as a function of the angle of incidence or the strength of a constant external electric field applied to the crystal. The results of the study are of interest for the development of devices controlling laser radiation.