Instability analysis of Gaussian beam propagation in a nonlinear refractive index medium

In this paper, we use a thin filament two dimensional Gaussian beam to model the self-trapping filament. The instability of the propagation of a Gaussian beam through a nonlinear refractive index media is investigated, theoretically and numerically. Specifically, the small scale instability of the beam is examined. The numerical results show that the propagation of the two dimensional Gaussian beam presents one or more nonlinear focal points.