Nonlinear optics of a two-level medium

V. E. Brazovskii

Haifeng Yao Haifeng Yao, Yueping Niu Yueping Niu, Yandong Peng +1 more

We investigate the propagation dynamics of nonlinear chirped optical laser pulses in a two-level medium.For certain chirp strength and chirp width, an incident 2π nonlinear chirped pulse will split into optical precursors and a stable self-induced transparency soliton.This is caused by the particular Fourier spectrum that includes not only central resonant frequency components but also high-frequency and low-frequency sidebands.Moreover, the effects of chirp parameters on the evolution of nonlinear chirped pulses are also discussed.

J. D. Franson, T. B. Pittman

Summary form only given.Nonlinear optical effects are normally limited to high-intensity fields containing a large number of photons because the electric field associated with a single photon is usually very weak. Nonlinear phase shifts at the two-photon level previously have been observed using high-Q cavities and atomic beams. The authors recently predicted that nonlocal effects involving pairs of atoms in a medium could enhance the nonlinear interaction between two photons to the point that nonlinear phase shifts could be obtained in an ordinary medium without the use of resonant cavities.

Robert W. Boyd

Vladimir Yu. Bazhenov, M. S. Soskin

A theoretical investigation is made of an optical absorption bistability in a Fabry–Perot interferometer filled with a nonlinear medium exhibiting reversible optical bleaching due to interaction with radiations with two different wavelengths. It is shown that the optical feedback efficiency can be enhanced, which makes it possible to reduce significantly the requirements in respect of the level of the residual absorption by the nonlinear medium.

Robert W. Boyd