Excitability and pattern formation in a liquid crystal Fabry-Perot interferometer

Citation
Py. Wang et al., Excitability and pattern formation in a liquid crystal Fabry-Perot interferometer, OPT COMMUN, 189(1-3), 2001, pp. 127-134
Citations number
13
Categorie Soggetti
Apllied Physucs/Condensed Matter/Materiales Science","Optics & Acoustics
Journal title
OPTICS COMMUNICATIONS
ISSN journal
00304018 → ACNP
Volume
189
Issue
1-3
Year of publication
2001
Pages
127 - 134
Database
ISI
SICI code
0030-4018(20010301)189:1-3<127:EAPFIA>2.0.ZU;2-T
Abstract
We demonstrate a nonlinear Fabry-Perot interferometer with a nematic liquid crystal to be an optical excitable system. The excitability is shown to ar ise from the competition of two Kerr type nonlinearities resulting from fie ld-induced molecular reorientation and thermal absorption in the presence o f laser radiation. We have observed all the essential fractures of excitabi lity in this system when it is spatially extended, namely, propagating puls es in one-dimensional space and spiral waves in two dimensions. We have fur ther studied patterns resulting from random noise excitations in this syste m. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.