On the dynamics of Airy beams in nonlinear media with nonlinear losses

TL;DR

This paper explores the behavior of Airy beams in nonlinear media with significant multi-photon absorption, identifying attractors and new dissipative beam states that influence their stability and dynamics.

Contribution

It introduces the concept of nonlinear Airy beams as attractors in media with nonlinear losses and describes how input conditions affect their formation and persistence.

Findings

Nonlinear Airy beams act as attractors in media with nonlinear losses.

Input position influences the formation speed and stability of nonlinear Airy beams.

A new type of highly dissipative, fully nonlinear Airy beam is identified.

Abstract

We investigate on the nonlinear dynamics of Airy beams in a regime where nonlinear losses due to multi-photon absorption are significant. We identify the nonlinear Airy beam (NAB) that preserves the amplitude of the inward H\"ankel component as an attractor of the dynamics. This attractor governs also the dynamics of finite-power (apodized) Airy beams, irrespective of the location of the entrance plane in the medium with respect to the Airy waist plane. A soft (linear) input long before the waist, however, strongly speeds up NAB formation and its persistence as a quasi-stationary beam in comparison to an abrupt input at the Airy waist plane, and promotes the formation of a new type of highly dissipative, fully nonlinear Airy beam not described so far.