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Airy–Bessel wave packets as versatile linear light bullets

Nature Photonics volume 4, pages 103–106 (2010)Cite this article

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Abstract

The generation of spatiotemporal optical wave packets that are impervious to both dispersion and diffraction has been a fascinating challenge1. Despite intense research activity, such localized waves, referred to as light bullets, have remained elusive. In nonlinear propagation, three-dimensional light bullets tend to disintegrate as a result of inherent instabilities2,3. Three-dimensional wave packets that propagate linearly have been reported4,5,6,7,8,9, but their utility is severely limited by the need to tailor the wave packet precisely to material properties. To overcome these limitations, we explore a new approach based on the one-dimensional Airy wave packet10. Here, we report the first observation of a class of versatile three-dimensional linear light bullets, which combine Bessel beams in the transverse plane with temporal Airy pulses. Their evolution does not depend critically on the material in which they propagate, and the consequent versatility will facilitate their study and applications ranging from bioimaging11 to plasma physics12.

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Figure 1: Experimental schematic.
Figure 2: Non-dispersive propagation, free acceleration and self-healing of an Airy pulse.
Figure 3: Propagation of an Airy–Bessel bullet.
Figure 4: Two-photon-excited fluorescence in a dispersive Rhodamine-B dye solution.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank A. Bartnik and K. Kieu for their help. This work was supported by the National Science Foundation (PHY-0653482).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Applied Physics, Cornell University, Ithaca, 14853, New York, USA

    Andy Chong, William H. Renninger & Frank W. Wise

  2. College of Optics/CREOL, University of Central Florida, Orlando, 32816, Florida, USA

    Demetrios N. Christodoulides

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  1. Andy Chong
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  2. William H. Renninger
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  3. Demetrios N. Christodoulides
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  4. Frank W. Wise
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Contributions

A.C. performed the experiments and analysed the data. W.H.R. performed a theoretical study with some numerical simulations. D.N.C. proposed the original concept and analytic models. F.W.W. supervised the project. The manuscript was prepared by A.C., D.N.C. and F.W.W.

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Correspondence to Andy Chong.

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The authors declare no competing financial interests.

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Chong, A., Renninger, W., Christodoulides, D. et al. Airy–Bessel wave packets as versatile linear light bullets. Nature Photon 4, 103–106 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1038/nphoton.2009.264

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