Nonperturbative calculation of the probability distribution of plane-wave transmission through a disordered waveguide.

A non-perturbative random-matrix theory is applied to the transmission of a monochromatic scalar wave through a disordered waveguide. The probability distributions of the transmittances Tmn and Tn = ∑ m Tmn of an incident mode n are calculated in the thick-waveguide limit, for broken time-reversal symmetry. A crossover occurs from Rayleigh or Gaussian statistics in the diffusive regime to lognormal statistics in the localized regime. A qualitatively different crossover occurs if the disordered region is replaced by a chaotic cavity. PACS numbers: 42.25.Bs, 5.45.+b, 72.15.Rn, 78.20.Dj Typeset using REVTEX