2015/07/15 by Andrea Carlo Marini, Marini, Andrea, F. Javier Garcı́a de Abajo +1 · 1 citation
Physics and Astronomy · #Advanced Fiber Laser Technologies #FOS: Physical sciences #Laser-Matter Interactions and Applications #Optics (physics.optics) #Quantum optics and atomic interactions
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1507.04318
openalex publication_date 2015/07/15 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
We theoretically demonstrate the existence of frozen light in near-zero-index\nmedia with cubic nonlinearity. Light is stopped to a standstill owing to the\ndivergent wavelength and the vanishing group velocity, effectively rendering,\nthrough nonlinearity, a positive-epsilon trapping cavity carved in an otherwise\nslightly-negative-epsilon medium. By numerically solving Maxwell's equations,\nwe find a soliton-like family of still azimuthal doughnuts, which we further\nstudy through an adiabatic perturbative theory that describes soliton\nevaporation in lossy media or condensation in actively pumped materials. Our\nresults suggest applications in optical data processing and storage, quantum\noptical memories, and soliton-based lasers without cavities. Additionally,\nnear-zero-index conditions can also be found in the interplanetary medium and\nin the atmosphere, where we provide an alternative explanation to the rare\nphenomenon of ball-lightning.\n