Optical bistability in semiconductors induced by thermal effects

We investigate thermally induced optical bistability (OB) in semiconductors using a cw-Argon-ion-laser beam pulsed by an electro-optic modulator. We obtain different types of OB due to absorptive and refractive changes with switching times in the order of ms. The different processes are modeled using a simple rate equation for the lattice temperature. Good agreement between theoretical predictions and the measurements are clearly to be seen.     

Optical bistability due to virtual formation of biexcitons in semiconductors

Intrinsic optical bistability is theoretically investigated in a coherent photon-biexciton system. It is shown that bistability due to virtual two photon-biexciton transitions could occur if the system were pumped by a single external field. The conditions for the appearance of the bistability are determined.     

Optical bistability produced by resonant Joule's heating of semiconductors

The thermal hysteresis of Joule's absorption of infrared radiation in then-type semiconductor magnetoplasma is analysed. Such bistability is connected with the temperature dependence of the relaxation time of free electrons, their density being constant. The resonant Joule's absorption bistability of the pumping infrared wave near a Langmuir resonance of free electrons is discussed as well as the hysteresis cross-modulation of an infrared probing wave by means of a pumping microwave. The possibilities of smooth detuning of the hysteresis regime due to a magnetic-field control and low energy thresholds of these regimes are illustrated for InSb thin films in relatively weak magnetic fieldsH1–2 kG.     

Optical absorption involving hydrogen-like centers in semiconductors

Russian Physics Journal -     

Optical bistability of a layered semiconductor in the exciton absorption region

The effect of specific features of the exciton and phonon spectra of layered semiconductors on the conditions of realization of optical bistability in the exciton absorption region has been theoretically investigated by the Green’s function method. By the example of the 2H polytype of PbI₂, it is shown that effective exciton scattering from low-energy bending-wave vibrations leads to a blue shift of the frequency range of bistability realization and its narrowing; expansion of the temperature range of bistability observation; and a shift of the hysteresis loop to higher intensities, accompanied by a decrease in its height and width. The possibility of observing polarization optical bistability, which is related to the dependence of the exciton energy spectrum on the propagation direction of a light wave in a crystal, is also substantiated.     

Optical bistability due to a two-photon absorption resonance with fluctuations

Using the intensity-dependent complex dielectric function for a two-photon absorption resonance we derive the Langevin equation for the fluctuating light-field in the non-linear resonator. The corresponding Fokker-Planck equation is solved by expanding the distribution function in terms of products of trigonometric functions and generalized Laguerre polynomials. The expansion coefficients are calculated using the method of matrix continued fractions. Numerical results for the stationary case are given.     

A model for optical bistability in semiconductors

A theoretical model of the excitation of a semiconductor by laser is considered. The novelty of this work is that, as distinguished from previous works, the effect of electron-hole interactions on optical bistability is included analytically.     

Optical bistability in CuCl

In CuCl, the optical properties of biexcitons imply an intensity dependence of the dielectric function. It is calculated within a density matrix formalism. The dielectric function is then used to discuss qualitatively experimental results for CuCl placed in a Fabry-Perot cavity. It turns out that the dispersive optical bistability is strongly limited by two-photon absorption.     

Optical bistability in an all-optical fiber nonlinear fabry-perot resonator with linear absorption

An all-optical fiber nonlinear Fabry-Perot resonator is proposed. The steady-state model for describing this resonator is developed. The transmission and refection bistabilities are shown numerically. Our results show that the bistability in this system is similar to that in a normal nonlinear Fabry-Perot etalon, except that the characteristics of the bistability can be changed not only by the cavity length but also by the phase shifts of the fiber loop mirrors.     

Optical bistability induced by mirror absorption: measurement of absorption coefficients at the sub-ppm level

We have observed optical bistability caused by absorption-induced thermal expansion of mirrors forming a Fabry-Perot interferometer. From the resulting anomalous transmission line shapes, absorption coefficients of the mirror coatings as low as 0.2parts in 10(6) (ppm) have been successfully measured.     

Optical bistability in fluorescein dyes

Optical bistability has been observed in highly concentrated fluorescein dye solutions and in thin (1 m) doped polymeric films. At concentrations larger than 10^–5 mole/l dye dimers are formed. For fluorescein dye, the dimer-monomer equilibrium constant is 10⁵ l/mole so that most of the dye species are in the dimer form. At 480 nm the dimer absorption cross section is 10^–18 cm²/molecule, while that for the dye monomer molecule is 7.6×10^–17 cm²/molecule. Upon laser excitation dimers dissociate to form monomers thus providing a highly nonlinear laser induced absorption. This high nonlinear absorption coefficient can be utilized for optically bistable response of the dye system.Optical bistability was observed by placing dye solutions or dye thin films inside a Fabry-Perot resonator and exciting it with 480 nm dye laser pulses of 10 ns duration. The effect is more pronounced in 10^–4 mole/l fluorescein than in 10^–6 mole/l fluorescein in which dimer formation is not that efficient.In disodium fluorescein no significant dimer formation is observed even at 10^–3 mole/l dye concentration. The observed bistability both in solution and in thin films can be explained in terms of recent models for optical bistability in nonlinearly absorbing molecular systems.     

Optical bistability in semiconductor lasers

Optical and Quantum Electronics -     

Field and frequency-dependent dielectric constant of quasi-one-dimensional semiconductors

The “conducting box” polarization model proposed by the present author and Belyantsev [4] which explains successfully the value and the frequency dependence of the giant dielectric constant of the one-dimensional organic semiconductor Me φ₃ As(TCNQ)₂, predicts that the dielectric constant drops in the high-electric-field region. The typical electric field strength is of the order of 20 V cm^?1.     

Extended temperature range of absorptive optical bistability in semiconductors

Optical bistability based on the temperature dependence of the absorption coefficient in a semiconductor is considered. It is theoretically demonstrated that the upper bound of the thermostat temperatures at which the bistability is possible can be raised by a factor of three as against its conventional value reported in the literature. This can be achieved in the case of the Auger recombination of free electrons in semiconductors.     

Modified optical bistability in two-photon absorption

The effect of level degeneracy of the absorbing atoms on the transmission characteristic of a ring cavity is examined within the mean field approximation. Using a single-mode input field, the possibility of realising a form of tristable behaviour is discussed.     

Optical bistability in four-level nonradiative dyes

We describe conditions under which optical bistability may be observed in a Fabry-Perot filled with saturably absorbing dye. Bistability occurs due to an intensity-dependent phase shift arising from nonresonant dispersion caused by an excited metastable state which is excited to the process of saturable absorption. Preliminary experiments confirm the theoretical predictions using BDN.     

Optical bistability in thin molecular films

Within the framework of a developed model of a medium consisting of molecular J aggregates and placed in an external resonant light field, it is shown how exciton self-localization and the dependence of the dipole moment components on molecule deformation affect optical bistability. Deformation of the molecules substantially facilitates the observation of a bistable dependence of the state of the medium and of the transmitted field amplitude on the incident field amplitude. The evolution of the system to a quasi-stationary, nonground state after the passage of an electromagnetic field pulse under the conditions of self-localization of excitons is studied.     

梯度颗粒复合介质的光学双稳

重点研究了组分的梯度构形对带壳球形颗粒复合介质的光学双稳特性的影响.其中球形颗粒是由非线性核和介电函数具有梯度分布的线性壳组成.对于壳层介电函数具有幂指数分布的情况,通过求解麦克斯韦方程,得到各区域的势能分布函数,从而求得核内电场的数学表达式.数值研究发现,该复合介质的光学双稳阈值和区域与壳层的厚度及壳层的介电幂指数有关,随着壳层厚度增大或幂指数增大,双稳阈值将变宽.此外,还研究了正入射情况下复合材料体系的反射系数随外电场的变化情况, 发现其关系曲线是一条回线. 关键词： 梯度颗粒 复合介质 光学双稳     

Optical bistability via atomic coherence

Optical bistability in a unidirectional cavity has been analyzed based on a ground-state doublet three-level atomic model in which atoms are initially prepared in a coherent superposition state. It is shown that bistability can be realized due to the initial coherence. Furthermore, the bistable hysteresis cycle becomes wider as the initial polarization increases, and the bistability can be controlled by the initial coherence.