Optical Phase Transitions in Photonic Networks: A Spin System Formulation

TL;DR

This paper models the collective behavior of nonlinear multimode photonic systems using a spin network analogy, revealing optical phase transitions akin to magnetic phase changes.

Contribution

It introduces a novel spin system formulation for photonic networks, linking optical phase transitions to spin network phenomena.

Findings

Identification of optical phase transitions similar to magnetic phases.

Dependence of transitions on network connectivity and energy.

Analysis of thermal equilibrium states in photonic systems.

Abstract

We investigate the collective dynamics of nonlinearly interacting modes in multimode photonic settings with long-range couplings. To this end, we have established a connection with the theory of spin networks. The emerging "photonic spins" are complex, soft (their size is not fixed) and their dynamics has two constants of motion. Our analysis shed light on the nature of the thermal equilibrium states and reveals the existence of optical phase-transitions which resemble a paramagnetic to a ferromagnetic and to a spin-glass phase transitions occurring in spin networks. We show that, for fixed average optical power, these transitions are driven by the type (constant or random couplings) of the network connectivity and by the total energy of the optical signal.