Summary form only given. Spontaneous symmetry breaking in systems undergoing a phase-transition represents one of the most intriguing subjects of statistical physics. Here we study light propagation in a metastable crystalline system that undergoes a first-order phase transition, and observe nonlinear propagation effects that seed the ordering of the system itself. Specifically, we launch a very narrow optical beam into a sample of photorefractive potassium-lithium-tantalate-niobate (KLTN) (KLiTaNbO/sub 3/) and examine its diffraction. When the crystal is at a temperature slightly above the paraelectric-ferroelectric transition (in the paraelectric phase), the beam is strongly distorted. After a temporal transient, the initially diffracting and heavily distorted beam self-focuses and eventually self-traps: exhibiting stationary (non-diffracting) propagation, resembling a spatial soliton.


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    Title :

    Spontaneous self-trapping of optical beams in metastable paraelectric crystals


    Contributors:
    DelRe, E. (author) / Tamburrini, M. (author) / Segev, M. (author) / Agranat, A.J. (author)


    Publication date :

    1999-01-01


    Size :

    257522 byte




    Type of media :

    Conference paper


    Type of material :

    Electronic Resource


    Language :

    English



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