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Physical Review A

Stochastic models for light-scattering noise in nonlinear optical Kerr media

Robert M. McGraw

Published Mar 1, 1992• 3 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Thermal light-scattering fluctuations are examined as a fundamental noise source inherent in nonlinear optical processes involving Kerr and artificial Kerr media. Stochastic models are introduced to simulate noise in optical phase conjugation via degenerate four-wave mixing, and in signal amplification via nondegenerate two-wave-mixing processes. Significant noise fluctuations in the amplitude and phase components of the processed signals are shown to occur even with incident signal powers in the milliwatt range. For time-dependent processes, including nondegenerate two-wave mixing, the fluctuation-dissipation theorem is shown to generalize a previously derived static susceptibility relation between light-scattering and nonlinear optical response to media exhibiting both power dissipation and nonlocal interaction.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.45.3250

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Journal of the Optical Society of America B•Jan 1, 1992•11 citations
Thermal light-scattering fluctuations are examined as a fundamental noise source inherent in nonlinear optical processes involving Kerr and artificial Kerr media. Stochastic models are introduced to simulate noise in optical phase conjugation via degenerate four-wave mixing, and in signal amplification via nondegenerate two-wave-mixing processes. Significant noise fluctuations in the amplitude and phase components of the processed signals are shown to occur even with incident signal powers in the milliwatt range. For time-dependent processes, including nondegenerate two-wave mixing, the fluctuation-dissipation theorem is shown to generalize a previously derived static susceptibility relation between light-scattering and nonlinear optical response to media exhibiting both power dissipation and nonlocal interaction.
This paper examines thermal (light-scattering) fluctuations as a dominant noise source in nonlinear optical processes. Fundamental limits to conjugate wave fidelity and signal power requirement are obtained through the statistical thermodynamic treatment of light-scattering noise in four-wave mixing based on the fluctuation-dissipation theorem. Several types of nonlinear media are examined including artificial Kerr suspensions, isotropic Kerr media, and fluids near a critical point. Where measurements are available, excellent quantitative agreement is obtained between theory and experiment.
This paper presents an examination of power dissipation in a nonlinear optical medium during the coherent transfer of energy from a pump to a signal beam, and quantitatively relates this dissipation (through the fluctuation-dissipation theorem) to the spectrum of thermal fluctuations that give rise to light-scattering noise. Calculations are presented for two-wave mixing in an artificial Kerr media using a powerful stochastic model for computer simulation of amplitude, phase, and intensity fluctuations due to light-scattering noise.
Two-wave mixing, or coherent beam combination, is of considerable interest to the nonlinear optics and laser physics communities. One approach, of particular interest to this study, involves irradiating an optical Kerr media with two nondegenerate laser beams. The finite response time of the Kerr material ensures that any laser-induced grating will lag the interference pattern formed by the two nondegenerate laser beams and thereby allow energy transfer from the high-frequency beam to the low-frequency one. For such media, thermal light scattering fluctuations give rise to thermal noise gratings which can transfer energy from one wave to the other. Since such gratings are random in nature, their effect is to introduce fluctuations in the two-wave mixing process itself. We examine the influence of such thermal noise gratings on two-wave mixing and determine the SNR for this process in the nondepleted pump approximation.
Measurements of light-intensity fluctuations have been carried out during cw nondegenerate two-wave mixing at visible wavelengths in an artificial Kerr medium. Taking advantage of the distinctive properties of artificial Kerr media, such as the high nonlinear efficiency and slow response, the zero-average component of optical noise has been revealed and completely characterized with regard to statistical and spectral features. Experimental results are discussed in the frame of a stochastic noise model including thermal fluctuations in the linear dielectric constant of the medium.