Abstract

The band transport model is used to derive the space-charge field induced by an optical beam propagating in photorefractive materials with the application of an external dc field in the steady state. The derivation explicitly displays the screening and diffusion fields and other higher-order corrections to them. The condition caused by the screening field for steady-state self-trapping of the optical beam is found analytically by means of a variational approach and compared with the numerical solution. The deflection of the optical beam that is caused by the asymmetric diffusion field, as well as its effect on self-trapping, are also studied.

© 1996 Optical Society of America

Self-trapping of optical beams in photorefractive media

Bruno Crosignani, Mordechai Segev, Doruk Engin, Paolo Di Porto, Amnon Yariv, and Greg Salamo
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 10(3) 446-453 (1993)

Screening-photovoltaic spatial solitons in biased photovoltaic–photorefractive crystals and their self-deflection

Liu Jinsong and Lu Keqing
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 16(4) 550-555 (1999)

Self-deflection suppression of bright spatial solitons in periodically poled photovoltaic photorefractive crystals

H. Cui, B. Z. Zhang, and W. L. She
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 25(10) 1756-1762 (2008)

Higher-order space-charge field effects on the self-deflection of bright screening photovoltaic spatial solitons

Jinsong Liu and Zhonghua Hao
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 19(3) 513-521 (2002)

Three-dimensional optical beam propagation and solitons in photorefractive crystals

Bruno Crosignani, Paolo Di Porto, Antonio Degasperis, Mordechai Segev, and Stefano Trillo
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 14(11) 3078-3090 (1997)