Surface waves in defocusing thermal nonlinear optical media

TL;DR

This paper predicts the existence of stable surface waves at the interface of defocusing thermal nonlinear optical media, influenced by temperature gradients and nonlinear effects, expanding understanding of light behavior in such materials.

Contribution

It introduces the concept of stable surface waves supported by defocusing thermal nonlinearities at material interfaces with temperature differences.

Findings

Stable fundamental and higher-order surface waves can exist in defocusing thermal nonlinear media.

Surface waves are supported by the interplay of interface repulsion and thermal defocusing.

Temperature gradients enable the formation of these surface waves.

Abstract

We predict that the interface of materials with defocusing thermal nonlinearities support stable fundamental and higher-order surface waves when the opposite edges of the medium are maintained at different temperatures. Such surface waves exist due to the interplay between repulsion from the interface and the defocusing thermal nonlinearity that deflect light beams from the bulk of the medium toward its edges.