Abstract

The delay in the observation of a bifurcation induced by a sweep of the control parameter has been studied in a variety of - optical instabilities ¹⁾. Most theoretical studies give a deterministic description of the problem. We address here this question through a stochastic dynamics characterization. The delay is due to a dynamical stabilization and the stability is here associated with the lifetime of a state. The lifetime is defined as a Mean - First Passage Time (MFPT) to reach a certain threshold observable value. This is identified with the time at which the instability is observed. Such identification gives an operational definition of the dynamical bifurcation point and the observed delay.

© 1988 Optical Society of America