Related papers: Optical pattern formation in self-focusing and sel…
Light propagating in an optically thick sample experiences multiple scattering. It is now known that interferences alter this propagation, leading to an enhanced backscattering, a manifestation of weak localization of light in such diffuse…
Spontaneous symmetry breaking and formation of self-organized structures in nonlinear systems are intriguing and important phenomena in nature. Advancing such research to new nonlinear optical regimes is of much interest for both…
Precise control of atom-light interactions is vital to many quantum information protocols. In particular, atomic systems can be used to slow and store light to form a quantum memory. Optical storage can be achieved via stopped light, where…
We consider a cloud of fermionic atoms in an optical lattice described by a Hubbard model with an additional linear potential. While homogeneous interacting systems mainly show damped Bloch oscillations and heating, a finite cloud behaves…
We consider the process of light scattering by optical solitons in a planar waveguide with homogeneous and inhomogeneous refractive index core. We observe resonant reflection (Fano resonances) as well as resonant transmission of light by…
We study coherent backscattering of a monochromatic laser by a dilute gas of cold two-level atoms in the weakly nonlinear regime. The nonlinear response of the atoms results in a modification of both the average field propagation (nonlinear…
A theoretical approach for the interpretation of reflectance spectra of opal photonic crystals with fcc structure and (111) surface orientation is presented. It is based on the calculation of photonic bands and density of states…
We present a theoretical analysis of a novel scheme for optical cooling of particles that does not in principle require a closed optical transition. A tightly confined laser beam interacting with a trapped particle experiences a phase…
Despite the quantum nature of the process, collective scattering by dense cold samples of two-level atoms can be interpreted classically describing the sample as a macroscopic object with a complex refractive index. We demonstrate that…
Coherent effects manifested in light scattering from cold, optically dense and disordered atomic systems are reviewed from a primarily theoretical point of view. Development of the basic theoretical tools is then elaborated through several…
We investigate the deflection of light by a cold atomic cloud when the light-matter interaction is locally tuned via the Zeeman effect using magnetic field gradients. This "lighthouse" effect is strongest in the single-scattering regime,…
Clouds of cold neutral atoms driven by a coherent light beam in a ring cavity exhibit self-structured states transversely with respect to the beam axis due to optomechanical forces and the back action of the atomic structures on the beam.…
We investigate the interaction between a light beam and a two-dimensional photonic lattice that is photo-induced in a photorefractive crystal using partially coherent light. We demonstrate that this interaction process is associated with a…
We theoretically investigate the transmission dynamics of coherent matter wave pulses across finite optical lattices in both the linear and the nonlinear regimes. The shape and the intensity of the transmitted pulse are found to strongly…
Regular pattern formation is ubiquitous in nature; it occurs in biological, physical, and materials science systems. Here we propose a set of experiments with ultracold atoms that show how to examine different types of pattern formation. In…
Filamentary structures are often identified in column density maps of molecular clouds, and appear to be important for both low- and high-mass star formation. Theoretically, these structures are expected to form in regions where the…
Interfering liquid surface waves are generated by electrically driven vertical oscillations of two or more equispaced pins immersed in a liquid (water). The corresponding intensity distribution, resulting from diffraction of monochromatic…
We study tunable refraction of light in one-dimensional periodic lattices induced optically in a photorefractive crystal. We observe experimentally both positive and negative refraction of beams which selectively excite the first or second…
Large and abrupt variations in the electromagnetic properties of materials lead to dramatic effects: even a single step-like change in the refractive index induces striking phenomena, such as time-refraction and time-reflection. When the…
We develop a versatile theoretical approach to the study of cold-atom diffractive scattering from light-field gratings by combining calculations of the optical near-field, generated by evanescent waves close to the surface of periodic…