Abstract

We theoretically demonstrate the existence of noise-sustained patterns in passive nonlinear quadratic or cubic (Kerr) optical cavities [1], in the regime of convective instability. This regime refers to the case of a system in which advection overwhelms the growth dynamics due to the instability. Thus the formed pattern leaves the system and a structure can be permanently observed only if noise continuously re-generates it. Henceforth, in this condition patterns arise as macroscopic manifestations of amplified noise; in particular, in optical cavities this noise can be of quantum origin [2].

© 1998 IEEE