The near-field effect in a system of two-level dipole particles

We have solved a self-consistent problem on interaction of two dipole atoms located at an arbitrary distance from each other with the field of a quasiresonance light wave, whose intensity is sufficient for the system to manifest nonlinear properties. The atoms are considered as two-level systems described by means of Bloch optical equations, while the field inside of the system includes both Coulomb and retarded parts. We consider a situation where atoms are identical and the distance between them is much smaller than the length of an outer light wave. The distribution of an electric field both inside of a small object and outside of it is found numerically. It is shown that the amplitude of the electric field in a wave zone depends substantially on the frequency of the external field and interatomic distance, while the field distribution differs from the field pattern of an electric dipole. At definite values of the external field intensity an optical multistability is a feature of the system under investigation. We have elucidated the conditions under which the multistability is manifested in the present system. The results obtained are considered as the near-field effect in the optics of small objects, which makes it possible to investigate the structure of small objects by means of optical radiation. Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Spektroskopii, Vol. 67, No. 3, pp. 375–378, May–June, 2000. The present work was supported by the Russian Foundation for Fundamental Research (grant 98-02-16035) and by a grant from the Federal Purpose-Oriented Program “Integration.”