NONLINEAR OPTICS: Transient energy exchange between two concurrent coherent waves in a nonlinear medium
An analysis is made of the interaction between two mutually coherent plane waves in a medium whose refractive index varies by an amount proportional to the local exposure up to a selected time. It is found that the parameters of the process depend on a single self-similar variable, the product of the depth and the input exposure: zE2dt. Analytic and numerical studies are made of the properties of the self-similar solution for various ratios of the wave intensities at the entrance to the medium.