Abstract

We describe observations of various transverse instabilities that occur when two laser beams intersect in nonlinear optical liquids. Patterns that we observe include two types of conical emission and the generation of a linear array of spots. These results can be understood in terms of the physical processes of self-diffraction, two-beam-excited conical emission, and seeded modulational instability.

© 2006 Optical Society of America

Transverse instabilities of two intersecting laser beams in a nonlinear Kerr medium

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