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Optics Letters

Feasibility of nonlinear reflection of light by a collisionless molecular beam

L. Roso, M. Ll. Pons

Published Nov 1, 1990• 11 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Numerical solutions of the Maxwell-Bloch equations describing the nonlinear absorption of an IR laser field as it propagates across a collisionless molecular beam are presented. Calculations show the possibility that the laser field experiences a self-reflection inside the molecular beam while it is being absorbed. Since the density of the molecular beam changes smoothly in the radial direction, there are no reflections induced by its boundaries, and it constitutes an ideal system to study the self-reflected wave. The reflectivity of the molecular beam is predicted to be vanishingly small at low intensities but to increase dramatically as the nonlinear effects become significant.

DOI
10.1364/ol.15.001230

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Numerical solutions of the Maxwell-Bloch equations describing the nonlinear absorption of an IR laser field as it propagates across a collisionless molecular beam are presented. Calculations show the possibility that the laser field experiences a self-reflection inside the molecular beam while it is being absorbed. Since the density of the molecular beam changes smoothly in the radial direction, there are no reflections induced by its boundaries, and it constitutes an ideal system to study the self-reflected wave. The reflectivity of the molecular beam is predicted to be vanishingly small at low intensities but to increase dramatically as the nonlinear effects become significant.
The propagation of laser light a few wavelengths inside a saturable absorber is theoretically studied. Computed steady-state solutions of the Maxwell–Bloch equations that describe the unidimensional propagation of a plane monochromatic wave, without introducing the slowly varying envelope approximation, show how saturation effects can influence this propagation. This can even lead to the appearance of a self-reflected wave inside the absorber because of the refractive-index changes that are induced by nonlinear coupling. One finds a close relation between the failure of the slowly varying envelope approximation and the presence of the self-reflected wave.
Propagation of laser light through a saturable absorber is theoretically studied. Computed steady state solutions of the Maxwell equations describing the unidimensional propagation of a plane monochromatic wave without introducing the slowly-varying envelope approximation are presented showing how saturation effects can influence the absorption of the field. At a certain range of refractive index and extintion coefficients, computed solutions display a very susprising behaviour, and a self-reflected wave appears inside the absorber. This can be useful for a new kind of biestable device, similar to a standard bistable cavity but with the back mirror self-induced by the light.
The propagation of laser light through a thin absorbing film is theoretically studied. Computed steady-state solutions of the Maxwell-Bloch equations describing the unidimensional propagation of a plane monochromatic wave without introducing the slowly varying envelope approximation are presented that show how saturation effects can influence the absorption of the field. Those solutions indicate a new mechanism that can result in a bistable response of a thin absorbing film. This mechanism is closely related to the so-called self-induced reflectivity.
A comprehensive model of intense laser light propagation in a fully saturable medium is presented. This model employs the Maxwell-Bloch equations for a two-level atomic system. Light propagating through a medium creates intensity-dependent index of refraction gradients that reduce to a Kerr nonlinearity only for a weak field. When the laser detuning is positive, self-induced index gradients cause the beam to self-focus. Stationary filaments occur when self-focusing exactly balances diffraction. There exists a unique set of two-dimensional fundamental (and higher mode) solutions for which the filament transverse profile (not Gaussian in general) depends on the following quantities: density of saturable absorbers, laser detuning from resonance, laser power, and natural linewidth. (In contrast the Kerr solution does not have a unique filament diameter.) Emphasis will be placed on propagation of Gaussian incident beams; deviations from the stationary solution in either shape or power generally give rise to oscillating spatial patterns, including donutlike profiles, or beam breakup.