Spontaneous Symmetry Breaking in Photonic Lattices: Theory and Experiment
arXiv:cond-mat/0412381 · doi:10.1016/j.physleta.2005.03.038
Abstract
We examine an example of spontaneous symmetry breaking in a double-well waveguide with a symmetric potential. The ground state of the system beyond a critical power becomes asymmetric. The effect is illustrated numerically, and quantitatively analyzed via a Galerkin truncation that clearly shows the bifurcation from a symmetric to an asymmetric steady state. This phenomenon is also demonstrated experimentally when a probe beam is launched appropriately into an optically induced photonic lattice in a photorefractive material.
4 pages, 3 figures