Nonlinear Optical Ring-Cavity Model Driven by a Gas Laser

John C. Englund, Robert R. Snapp, William C. Schieve

Vladimir S. Smirnov, B. L. Zhelnov

Robert G. Harrison, W. J. Firth, Chassib A. Emshary +1 more

Dispersive optical hysteresis in an all optical passive unidirectional ring cavity containing a molecular gas has been observed. Ammonia is used as the nonlinear medium off resonantly excited on the aR(1,1) transition using temporally smooth 100-ns pulses from a transversely, excited, atmospheric pressure CO2 laser. Results are in excellent agreement with the theory of Ikeda recently generalized by the authors to describe period doubling in this system.

Jesús Yelo-Sarrión, Pedro Parra‐Rivas, Nicolas Englebert +3 more

We report on the observation of nonlinear dynamics in driven-dissipative Bose-Hubbard dimers using a pair of coupled fiber ring resonators coherently driven by a single laser beam.We comprehensively explore the optical switching arising when scanning the detuning of the undriven cavity and demonstrate the key role played by the driven cavity detuning in the nonlinear regime.By driving the photonic dimer out of equilibrium, we observe the occurrence of robust self-switching oscillations.

Hermann Haken, H. Sauermann

Eric Curtis John Oliver

This thesis presents the theory of the driven optical ring cavity containing a nonlinear material. First, an overview of the history of bistability and spatial solitons in driven nonlinear cavities is outlined. Then, the basic theory of the optical Kerr effect is presented and two of its consequences are outlined: optical bistability and spatial solitons. Within this background, the mirror feedback model is derived from the Maxwell-Bloch equations and considerations of the classical optics of the cavity. This model is analytically shown to exhibit bistability in the plane wave case. The mean-field model is subsequently derived by applying the mean-field limit to the Maxwell-Bloch equations and the cavity optics. In addition, the mean-field model is analytically shown to exhibit bistability in the plane wave case. Numerical simulations are performed on the mean-field model demonstrating the existence of: (i) plane wave bistability, (ii) transverse modulational bistability, (iii) the ability to “switch†between bistable states in both the plane wave and modulated case, (iv) instabilities in the modulated case and (v) the possibility for optimization of the switching process. Finally, an application of bistable driven cavities is explored: an all-optical digital information processor and storage device.