Optical Pulse Dynamics in Active Metamaterials with Positive and Negative Refractive Index

TL;DR

This paper investigates the complex dynamics of two-color light pulses in active metamaterials with both positive and negative refractive indices, revealing nonlinear interactions and localized wave phenomena.

Contribution

It introduces a numerical study of two-color pulse propagation in active metamaterials with resonant atomic transitions, highlighting novel nonlinear effects and wave trapping.

Findings

Identification of self-trapped waves in the metamaterial

Observation of counter-propagating radiation waves

Detection of hot spots of medium excitation

Abstract

We study numerically the propagation of two-color light pulses through a metamaterial doped with active atoms such that the carrier frequencies of the pulses are in resonance with two atomic transitions in the $\Lambda$ configuration and that one color propagates in the regime of positive refraction and the other in the regime of negative refraction. In such a metamaterial, one resonant color of light propagates with positive and the other with negative group velocity. We investigate nonlinear interaction of these forward- and backward-propagating waves, and find self-trapped waves, counter-propagating radiation waves, and hot spots of medium excitation.