Summary
We review the general properties of optical pulses that produce wave collapse in bulk Kerr media. First, analytical tools emphasizing the threshold power for collapse are recalled for the case in which one wave component is described by a single nonlinear Schrödinger equation. Next, the case of several light waves is investigated using a system of coupled nonlinear Schrödinger equations. Depending on their initial separation distance and power, two waves are shown either to disperse or to collapse individually, or to attract each other to form a central lobe, which may blow up at a finite propagation distance. Furthermore, the influence of four-wave mixing and walk-off between two components is detailed. It is shown that near phase matching, four-wave mixing can reinforce the collapse by lowering the self-focusing power threshold, whereas walk-off inhibits the collapse by detrapping the waves. Finally, collapse in media that promote an interplay between cubic and quadratic nonlinearities is discussed.
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Bergé, L. (2001). Nonlinear Wave Collapse. In: Trillo, S., Torruellas, W. (eds) Spatial Solitons. Springer Series in Optical Sciences, vol 82. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-44582-1_9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-44582-1_9
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