743 research outputs found
Correlated Multiphoton Holes
We generate bipartite states of light which exhibit an absence of multiphoton
coincidence events between two modes amid a constant background flux. These
`correlated photon holes' are produced by mixing a coherent state and
relatively weak spontaneous parametric down-conversion using a balanced
beamsplitter. Correlated holes with arbitrarily high photon numbers may be
obtained by adjusting the relative phase and amplitude of the inputs. We
measure states of up to five photons and verify their nonclassicality. The
scheme provides a route for observation of high-photon-number nonclassical
correlations without requiring intense quantum resources.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, comments are welcom
Light bullets in quadratic media with normal dispersion at the second harmonic
Stable two- and three-dimensional spatiotemporal solitons (STSs) in
second-harmonic-generating media are found in the case of normal dispersion at
the second harmonic (SH). This result, surprising from the theoretical
viewpoint, opens a way for experimental realization of STSs. An analytical
estimate for the existence of STSs is derived, and full results, including a
complete stability diagram, are obtained in a numerical form. STSs withstand
not only the normal SH dispersion, but also finite walk-off between the
harmonics, and readily self-trap from a Gaussian pulse launched at the
fundamental frequency.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures, accepted to Phys. Rev. Let
Anisotropic solitons in dipolar Bose-Einstein Condensates
Starting with a Gaussian variational ansatz, we predict anisotropic bright
solitons in quasi-2D Bose-Einstein condensates consisting of atoms with dipole
moments polarized \emph{perpendicular} to the confinement direction. Unlike
isotropic solitons predicted for the moments aligned with the confinement axis
[Phys. Rev. Lett. \textbf{95}, 200404 (2005)], no sign reversal of the
dipole-dipole interaction is necessary to support the solitons. Direct 3D
simulations confirm their stability.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure
Quantum state measurements using multi-pixel photon detectors
The characterization and conditional preparation of multi-photon quantum
states requires the use of photon number resolving detectors. We study the use
of detectors based on multiple avalanche photodiode pixels in this context. We
develop a general model that provides the positive operator value measures for
these detectors. The model incorporates the effect of cross-talk between pixels
which is unique to these devices. We validate the model by measuring coherent
state photon number distributions and reconstructing them with high precision.
Finally, we evaluate the suitability of such detectors for quantum state
tomography and entanglement-based quantum state preparation, highlighting the
effects of dark counts and cross-talk between pixels.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figure
Azimuthally polarized spatial dark solitons: exact solutions of Maxwell's equations in a Kerr medium
Spatial Kerr solitons, typically associated with the standard paraxial
nonlinear Schroedinger equation, are shown to exist to all nonparaxial orders,
as exact solutions of Maxwell's equations in the presence of vectorial Kerr
effect. More precisely, we prove the existence of azimuthally polarized,
spatial, dark soliton solutions of Maxwell's equations, while exact linearly
polarized (2+1)-D solitons do not exist. Our ab initio approach predicts the
existence of dark solitons up to an upper value of the maximum field amplitude,
corresponding to a minimum soliton width of about one fourth of the wavelength.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Switching of Discrete Solitons in Engineered Waveguide Arrays
We demonstrate a simple method for controlling nonlinear switching of
discrete solitons in arrays of weakly coupled optical waveguides, for both
cubic and uadratic nonlinearities. Based on the effective discrete nonlinear
equations describing the waveguide arrays in the tight-binding approximation,
we develop the concept of the array engineering by means of a step-like
variation of the waveguide coupling. We demonstrate the digitized switching of
a narrow input beam for up to eleven neighboring waveguides, in the case of the
cubic nonlinearity, and up to ten waveguides, in the case of quadratic
nonlinearity. We discuss our predictions in terms of the physics of the
engineered Peierls-Nabarro (PN) potential experienced by strongly localized
nonlinear modes moving in a lattice and calculate, for the first time, the PN
potential for the quadratic nonlinear array. We also confirm our concept and
major findings for a full-scaled continuous model and realistic parameters, by
means of the beam propagation method.Comment: 9 pages, 8 figures, to be submitted to Physical review
Coupled-mode theory for Bose-Einstein condensates
We apply the concepts of nonlinear guided-wave optics to a Bose-Einstein
condensate (BEC) trapped in an external potential. As an example, we consider a
parabolic double-well potential and derive coupled-mode equations for the
complex amplitudes of the BEC macroscopic collective modes. Our equations
describe different regimes of the condensate dynamics, including the nonlinear
Josephson effect for any separation between the wells. We demonstrate
macroscopic self-trapping for both repulsive and attractive interactions, and
confirm our results by numerical simulations.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures; typos removed, figures amended; submitted to PR
A Potential of Interaction between Two- and Three-Dimensional Solitons
A general method to find an effective potential of interaction between far
separated 2D and 3D solitons is elaborated, including the case of 2D vortex
solitons. The method is based on explicit calculation of the overlapping term
in the full Hamiltonian of the system (_without_ assuming that the ``tail'' of
each soliton is not affected by its interaction with the other soliton, and, in
fact,_without_ knowing the exact form of the solution for an isolated soliton -
the latter problem is circumvented by reducing a bulk integral to a surface
one). The result is obtained in an explicit form that does not contain an
artificially introduced radius of the overlapping region. The potential applies
to spatial and spatiotemporal solitons in nonlinear optics, where it may help
to solve various dynamical problems: collisions, formation of bound states
(BS's), etc. In particular, an orbiting BS of two solitons is always unstable.
In the presence of weak dissipation and gain, the effective potential can also
be derived, giving rise to bound states similar to those recently studied in 1D
models.Comment: 29 double-spaced pages in the latex format and 1 figure in the ps
format. The paper will appear in Phys. Rev.
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