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Published on: January 28, 2019
Complex light: dynamic phase transitions of a light beam in a nonlinear nonlocal disordered medium
1Research Center "Enrico Fermi" Via Panisperna 85/A 00184, Rome, Italy. claudio.conti@phys.uniroma1.it
Physical Review. E, Statistical, Nonlinear, and Soft Matter Physics
|February 21, 2006
Summary
This study explores light filament dynamics in random media, revealing cluster formation as a phase transition. Brownian dynamics models and simulations validate these findings for optical solitons.
Area of Science:
- Nonlinear Optics
- Physics of Complexity
- Statistical Physics
Background:
- Investigating the behavior of light filaments (spatial optical solitons) in complex media is crucial for understanding light propagation.
- Nonlinear and nonlocal random media present unique challenges due to their inherent unpredictability.
- Complexity physics offers advanced frameworks for analyzing emergent phenomena in such systems.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the dynamics of multiple light filaments in a nonlinear, nonlocal, random optical medium.
- To interpret the observed cluster formation as a dynamic phase transition.
- To establish a connection between soliton ensemble vibrational spectra and random matrix theory.
Main Methods:
- Utilizing paradigms from the physics of complexity.
- Employing a Brownian dynamics model for theoretical arguments.
- Performing numerical simulations of a stochastic partial differential equation system.
Main Results:
- Demonstrated that cluster formation in light filaments can be viewed as a dynamic phase transition.
- Established a link between random matrix theory and the vibrational spectra of soliton ensembles.
- Validated theoretical Brownian dynamics models through numerical simulations.
Conclusions:
- The study provides a novel perspective on light filament dynamics in complex media.
- Findings are relevant to Bose condensed gases and plasma physics, highlighting broader applicability.
- The research integrates concepts from nonlinear optics, complexity, and statistical physics.
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