OPTICAL BISTABILITY IN A NONLINEAR CANTOR CORRUGATED WAVE-GUIDE

The spectral transmission properties of a self-similar corrugated opti cal nonlinear waveguide are studied theoretically. The structure can b e realized by a planar waveguide with a square-wave modulation of the guiding film thickness such that the thickest layers belong to a triad ic Canter set. The transmission spectrum of the linear structure exhib its localized peaks inside forbidden frequency band gaps. The nonlinea r transmission behavior of the structure is studied at wavelengths clo se to localized deep peaks that appear in the linear transmission spec trum. Bistable behavior is found, and a comparison with nonlinear Brag g reflector devices and with an integrated nonlinear multilayer Fabry- Perot resonator. (C) 1996 Optical Society of America