November 15, 1994 / Vol. 19, No.

22 / OPTICS LETTERS

1825

Polarization spatial chaos in second-harmonic generation

Stefano Trillo
Fondazione Ugo Bordoni, Via B. Castiglione 59, 00142 Rome, Italy

Gaetano Assanto
Dipartimento di Ingegneria Elettronica, III University of Rome, Via Eudossiana 18, 00184 Rome, Italy
Received June 6, 1994

We investigate second-harmonicgeneration beyond the scalar approximation. We show that the tensorial nature of the second-order susceptibility may lead to the onset of spatial chaos in the polarization evolution of the
interacting fields. We discuss the effect of chaos on situations of interest.

The weakness of third-order nonlinearities is an obstacle to the implementation of all-optical devices at reasonable power levels. This problem has motivated a revival of interest in quadratic media, in which a fundamental frequency (FE) field may experience a nonlinear phase change as a result of its interaction with the generated second-harmonic (SH).'4 However, two-wave mixing has been investigated under the hypotheses that only a FF and a SH scalar field interact through an effective nonlinear coefficient. In this case the field evolutions are described either by the closed-form solutions to the coupledmode equations 4 or by phase-plane methods. 5' 6 Con-

where Akj = k(2wo)- kj(co) = 2co(n a - nj)/c 2 is the wave-vector mismatch, Xij = w[21(6oc3n2 2 ni ni )]" x(2), with i, j = 1, 2, where X(2) X(2) =
(c;2w,-w) =X12)(2o); w, w) is the corresponding el-

versely, in this Letter we demonstrate that the generalization of the coupled-mode approach to the vectorial case leads to the appearance of spatially irregular behaviors of the fields. The importance of this prediction is twofold. First, the onset of spatial chaos poses a fundamental limitation on the efficiency of SH generation as well as on the mode of operations exploiting sensitivity to the relative 5 phase of a SH seed. 7 Second, vectorial interactions generalize the cascading effect based on the scalar approach, for which the generation of the SH is exploited to produce a nonlinear phase shift of the FF field. In the vectorial case a FF beam may acquire energy from another FF beam with different polarization through a cascaded process that implies conversion to the SH field as an intermediate step. As long as this polarization cascading is exploited for 3 implementing all-optical devices,' 8 it is important to establish the range of parameters for which the field evolution does remain regular and predictable. Here we consider the interaction between two linearly polarized cw components of an FF field (with slowly varying amplitudes E0,j, j = 1, 2) and a scalar
component of an SH field (say E 2 ). The coupled-

ement of the susceptibility tensor (measured in meters per volt), and the field amplitudes E 2 and Eo,j are such that their square moduli directly give the intensity (in watts per square meter). Equations (1) describe satisfactorily the vectorial process under the hypotheses that the orthogonal SH component is highly mismatched and hence does not couple to the other fields. Henceforth we consider a purely parametric process with real x(. In this case Eqs. (1) admit of the conservation of the total intensity, I = 01E2 + 1E0,212 + E212, ,11 and may be cast in the usual Hamiltonian form,5 -i dAj/dz = aH/aA*, in terms of the new variables Aj = T2EEo,/ and A3 = E 2 /jrI. The field Hamil17 tonian H = H(Al, A2 , A3 , Al*,A2 *, A3 *), which represents another conserved quantity of Eqs. (1), may be decomposed as H = H1 + H2 + H12, where

H. = Xii 2 3 exp(-iAkjz) + c.c. (j = 1,2),

(2a)
H12 =

A2A *

Xl2 AlA 2 A 3 * exp(Ak

Ak 2 z) + c.c. (2b)

mode equations governing the parametric interaction read as

represent the Hamiltonian of the (two) type I and the type II interactions, respectively. The number of effective degrees of freedom of Eqs. (1) may be reduced by changes of variables (i.e., canonical transformations). From Hamiltonian equations (2) note that the phases q5j = arg(Aj) appear only through the combination 01,2 Akl, 2 + 0 3 - 201,2. The variables conjugated to Oj (j = 1, 2) are the corresponding FF intensity (or power) fractions 7-q A2/2 =IEo 2 /I. J From Eqs. (1) we obtain that the variables qj and Oj
obey

d'i =XyjjE g*exp(iAkjz) 'i 2 Eo

+ X12E2E0,3-i*

expi Ak + Ak2Z

dqj

dE2 2 dz =Xi Eo,l ex~p(-iAk 1z) 1

Y22Eo,2 exp(- iAk 2 Z)

Ak 1 + A 2

d;

aH

aOl' d;

dOj

aH
a7 j

(j == 1,2),

(3)

+ 2X1 Eo,1Eo,2 exp(2

(1)

where vreads as

Ak2z, and the reduced Hamiltonian H

0146-9592/94/221825-03$6.00/0

1994 Optical Society of America

1826

OPTICS LETTERS / Vol. 19, No. 22 / November 15, 1994 1 - ')2 through the conservation of total intensity. The first two terms in Hamiltonian equation (4) account for linear phase rotations that are due to the mismatches, whereas the following nonlinear terms are responsible for the two type I interactions and for the type II process, respectively. Whenever only one of the three nonlinear terms is effective, the system reduces to a Hamiltonian with only one degree of freedom [i.e., Eq. (2a) or (2b)], which is integrable by quadrature. 5 It is well known, indeed, that explicit solitons exist for a scalar, either type I or type II, interaction.4 In the general case the absence of additional symmetries (i.e., conservation rules) of the system of Eqs. (3) and (4), which has two degrees of freedom, implies the potential occurrence of chaotic behavior. The discrimination of regular versus disordered evolution in the space of the dimensionless parameters (K, p, XI, XII) requires extensive numerical work that goes beyond the scope of this Letter. Here we show that spatial disorder builds up with reference to a situation of interest such as SH generation, even if the type II process is negligible

0
'-

U) 1
C.).

0 0
0

20 40

distance
(a)

60 80 100 120

0
0
L.a. .4-

(i.e., XiI << XI).

More specifically, we consider an

00
0 20 40

distance
(b)

60

80 100 120

V)

0
.a)
.6-

.1)1

0 0
0

10

distance
(c)

20

3C

40

Fig. 1. Power fractions of the SH (77, dotted curves) and the FF (n,, solid curve and 272, dashed curve) fields versus distance for an angle /p = 1 deg [i.e.,
'

and (a) p = 0.3, (b) p = 1, (c) p = 2.

771(0) = 0-9997,

772(0) = 0.00031.

Here

i<

.-= 0, XI = 0.5,

H=H( 771 , 2 2,01,02)= 7

-K77l -

772+

2p(l -'77 - 772)2

IiT41 COS01 +
02)

X (X71 COS 01 + XI712 COS 02 + XII

(4) where we have introduced p X11v'IL/Ak L (p2 is 2 the constant normalized intensity), the mismatch ratio K-" AkL/Ak 2 L, XI X22/X11, XII X12/,t1, and 2 we have expressed the SH fraction 7 -E 2 I /I = 1 -

FF beam with linear polarization slightly rotated {by 1 an angle p = tan-'[Fi 2(0)/771(0)] 2} with respect to the ' phase-matching polarization (which we assume to be Al by choosing K = 0). The intense matched q1,component generates SH, which in turn couples back to the weak orthogonally polarized phase-mismatched component 'q2- In the scalar approximation (772= 0) the SH grows asymptotically at the expense of the strong FF beam, which is depleted completely as 1 = 1 - tanh 2(p;). 4 In the phase plane this solution is represented by a separatrix that divides two portions of the plane.' However, this is no longer true in the vectorial case. At relatively low powers [see Fig. 1(a), where p = 0.3], a slight polarization misalignment (in Fig. 1 we choose p = 1 deg) results in periodic (or quasi-periodic) coupling between the strong FF component and the SH, whereas the weak FF beam remains practically uncoupled. At higher powers [Fig. 1(b), where p = 1] the field starts to undergo disordered oscillations, while the energy coupling toward the mismatched FF component becomes more pronounced. When the power is further increased to [Fig. 1(c), where p = 2] the field evolutions exhibit stochastic coupling among the three waves. In this case the FF beam's polarization is rotated in an essentially unpredictable fashion, while SH photons are created and annihilated in an irregular way along the nonlinear medium. Here, the physical mechanism causing the breakdown of regularity into stochasticity is ubiquitous for Hamiltonian systems9 and in particular is reminiscent of polarization chaos in cubic media with periodic forcing.'0 That is, it is the accumulation of nonlinear resonances in the neighborhood of the unperturbed separatrix (i.e., individuated by H = -K with B2 = 0) induced in this case by the periodic coupling with the weakly mismatched FF component. The main feature of a chaotic system is the exponential divergence of nearby trajectories. It measures the degree of chaoticness of a given trajectory and may be quantified by the maximal Lya-

November 15, 1994 / Vol.19, No. 22 / OPTICS LETTERS

10 1 1

1827

S -1 -2
-3

a) 10

0 c

10

,.-1

l0 -4
101 10 2

distance

103 10 4

10 5

ent dynamic evolutions, this becomes evident only for sufficiently long (with respect to the rate of divergence Am,of nearby trajectories) sample lengths. In fact, as Fig. 3(a) shows for ; = 2, the SH power fraction seems a regular function of p, whereas it turns out to be clearly irregular for ; = 20 [Fig. 3(b)]. Whenever pulsed light is employed, because similar oscillations occur in the transmission of the FF components the FF pulse will emerge completely depolarized in the nonlinear interaction. For given values of p and Ak 2 L the corresponding peak intensity in 2 physical units is I = (pAk2 L/X11L) . For instance, pAk2 L = 10 gives, in a crystal L = 1 cm long at A= 2 2'ic/w = 1 Am, a peak intensity of I = 3.4 GW/cm
for X(2)/[n2. (n1)2 ]"2
= 1 pm/V.

Fig. 2. Maximal Lyapunov exponent Am versus distance ; for different values of the input amplitude p. Here 771(0) 0.99, 772(0) = 0.01, XI = 0.5, and K = 0. =

0
C.) L.a4-

In summary, the inclusion of the polarization properties in the description of SH generation in a transparent medium leads us to predict, for the first time to our knowledge, the onset of spatial chaos. The chaotic regime appears as the stochastic evolution of both the FF polarizations and the generated SH. We point out that, here, spatial chaos has the features of a conservative (Hamiltonian) system, as opposed to the temporal chaos predicted for intracavity SH generation described by a dissipative (i.e., with losses and pumping) system.'2 The authors are grateful to G. I. Stegeman for enlightening discussions. The work of S. Trillo was carried out in the framework of an agreement between the Fondazione Ugo Bordoni and the Istituto Superiore Poste e Telecomunicazioni. G. Assanto
acknowledges support from 1993 MURST 40%.

0 0 co
1 4-)
;_1

0
0

input amplitude p

10

References
1. R. DeSalvo, D. J. Hagan, M. Sheik-Bahae, G. I.

Fig. 3. Generated SH power fraction versus normalized amplitude p for K = 0, = 0.1, and (a) 6max Ak2 L = 2, X =
(b) Vmax= 20.

Stegeman, E. W. Van Stryland, and H. Vanherzeele,

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punov exponent,9 "' defined as the limit for g X of Am(;) = (1/')ln[llt(')1J/11t(' = 0)11]. Here t is the tangent vector, which evolves according to the equation ti
=

_ 1(afi/axj)tj,

where x
772(0) =

(01, 0I,

772, 02)

and

we denote Eqs. (3) and (4) as x = fa(x), i = 1, . . . ,4. In Fig. 2 we show the estimated Lyapunov exponent
Am(>) for 71,(0)= 0.99,

6. S. A. Akhmanov and R. V. Khoklov, Problems of Nonlinear Optics (Gordon & Breach, New York, 1972),
pp. 155-165. 7. D. J. Hagan, M. Sheik-Bahae, Z. Wang, G. I.

0.01.

The monotoni-

cally decreasing Am obtained for p = 0.3 corresponds to a regular (periodic or quasi-periodic) trajectory.
Above threshold for chaos the exponent converges to

Stegeman, E. W. Van Stryland, and G. Assanto, Opt.

Lett. 19, 1305 (1994).

a finite value, which gets larger, the larger the input power. We obtained similar results in a wide range of Xi values. Because in a real experiment access to the longitudinal evolution is generally impossible, the onset of chaos may be demonstrated by monitoring the generated SH as a function of the input amplitude (or power). Although in the chaotic regime slight changes of power result in completely differ-

8. G. Assanto, I. Torelli, and S. Trillo, Electron. Lett. 30,

733 (1994).

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