Related papers: Optical Bistability in Colloidal Crystals
A dielectric material's response to light is macroscopically described by electric displacement fields due to polarization and susceptibility, but the atomistic origin is light-cycle-driven motion of electron densities in the restoring…
We study the non-equilibrium pattern formation that emerges when magnetically repelling colloids, trapped by optical tweezers, are abruptly released, forming colloidal explosions. For multiple colloids in a single trap we observe a pattern…
Bistability is widely exploited to demonstrate all-optical signal processing and light-based computing. The standard paradigm of switching between two steady states corresponding to '0" and '1" bits is based on the rule that a transition…
Recent experiments have realized a twisted bilayer-like optical potential for ultra-cold atoms, which in contrast to solid-state set ups may allow for an arbitrary ratio between the inter- and intra-layer couplings. For commensurate Moir\'e…
Coherent scattering of light from ultracold atoms involves an exchange of energy and momentum introducing a wealth of non-linear dynamical phenomena. As a prominent example particles can spontaneously form stationary periodic configurations…
When captured by a flat nematic-isotropic interface, colloidal particles can be dragged by it. As a result spatially periodic structures may appear, with the period depending on a particle mass, size, and interface…
In this work, we demonstrate that the nonlinear response of certain soft-matter systems can be tailored at will by appropriately engineering their optical polarizability. In particular, we deliberately synthesize stable colloidal…
Cholesteric liquid crystals with helicoidal molecular architecture are known for their ability to selectively reflect light with the wavelength that is determined by the periodicity of molecular orientations. Here we demonstrate that by…
Colloidal model systems allow studying crystallization kinetics under fairly ideal conditions with rather well characterized pair interactions and minimized external influences. In complementary approaches therefore experiment, analytic…
Cholesteric liquid crystal elastomers have interesting and potentially very useful photonic properties. In an ideal monodomain configuration of these materials, one finds a Bragg-reflection of light in a narrow wavelength range and a…
We study how dispersions of colloidal particles in a cholesteric liquid crystal behave under a time-dependent electric field. By controlling the amplitude and shape of the applied field wave, we show that the system can be reproducibly…
We have experimentally studied the unstable dynamics of a harmonically trapped Bose-Einstein condensate loaded into a 1D moving optical lattice. The lifetime of the condensate in such a potential exhibits a dramatic dependence on the…
We prepare a Bose-Einstein condensed gas in a three-dimensional optical lattice and study the excitation spectrum of the superfluid phase for different interaction strengths. We probe the response of the system by modulating the depth of…
We consider the dynamics of a periodic chain of N coupled overdamped particles under the influence of noise. Each particle is subjected to a bistable local potential, to a linear coupling with its nearest neighbours, and to an independent…
Dating from experiments more than 20 years ago, it has been realized that the crystallization of hard colloidal particles in the vicinity of dynamical arrest has several anomalies, that render the conventional nucleation and growth model…
Beyond the constraints of conservative systems, altering wave propagation frequency emerges as a crucial factor across diverse physical domains. This Letter demonstrates bi-directional asymmetric frequency conversion -- either upward or…
We study a disordered network of bistable bonds subjected to periodic strain. The model is inspired by experiments on crumpled sheets and it features behaviors associated with glasses, including a complex energy landscape, memories, and…
We experimentally and theoretically study the peak fraction of a Bose-Einstein condensate loaded into a cubic optical lattice as the lattice potential depth and entropy per particle are varied. This system is well-described by the…
A novel concept for the design of nonlinear optical diodes is proposed which uses the multistability of coupled nonlinear microcavities and the dependence of switching thresholds on the direction of incidence. A typical example of such…
We review the recent developments in the field of photonic lattices emphasizing their unique properties for controlling linear and nonlinear propagation of light. We draw some important links between optical lattices and photonic crystals…