Nonlinear polariton pulse propagation in bulk semiconductors

Nonlinear propagation of optical pulses through an extended bulk semiconduc tor is investigated using the coupled semiconductor Maxwell-Bloch equations including excitation induced correlations. For short pulse excitation arou nd the exciton resonance, the theory describes the development of polariton beats and their suppression at increasing input pulse intensities due to t he coupling of single exciton states to the Coulomb-correlated continuum of two-exciton states. A comparison of the theoretical results with experimen tal observations for CdSe bulk material is presented.