Coupled-waveguide arrays: Oblique injection & soliton propagation

Christian, JM; McCoy, E; McDonald, GS

Abstract

The interaction between light beams and periodically-patterned host materials (such as coupled-waveguide arrays or photonic crystals) is a fundamental class of problem in nonlinear optics [1,2]. While oblique (off-axis) propagation effects play a central role in both these configurations (and lie at the heart of photonic device architectures generally), such considerations have been largely absent from the literature to date. In this presentation, we propose a new nonparaxial model capable of describing arbitrary-angle evolution of scalar beams in periodic optical systems. By retaining a more complete governing equation that is naturally of the inhomogeneous Helmholtz class [3,4], we have been able to capture configurations whereby, in the laboratory frame, the incident light beam may be inclined at any arbitrary angle with respect to the waveguide array. Simulations involving these geometrical considerations reveal that, in general, oblique propagation across a patterned optical structure involves elements of both coupled-waveguide and photonic-crystal physics. Paraxial theory, rooted firmly in the traditional nonlinear-Schrödinger formalism (with its slowly-varying envelopes and small-angle limitations), obscures such a connection [1,2].

References
[1] D. Mandelik, R. Morandotti, J. S. Aitchison, and Y. Silberberg, Phys. Rev. Lett. 92, 093904 (2004).
[2] D. N. Christodoulides, F. Lederer, and Y. Silberberg, Nature 424, 817 (2003).
[3] P. Chamorro-Posada, G. S. McDonald, and G. H. C. New, J. Mod. Opt. 45, 1111 (1998).
[4] J. Sánchez-Curto, P. Chamorro-Posada, and G. S. McDonald, Opt. Lett. 32, 1126 (2007).

Citation

Christian, J., McCoy, E., & McDonald, G. (2013, June). Coupled-waveguide arrays: Oblique injection & soliton propagation. Presented at College of Science & Technology Research Showcase, University of Salford

• Presentation Conference Type: Other
• Conference Name: College of Science & Technology Research Showcase
• Conference Location: University of Salford
• Start Date: Jun 19, 2013
• Deposit Date: Jun 11, 2013
• Publicly Available Date: Apr 5, 2016
• Additional Information: Event Type : Conference