Spatiotemporal coupling in dispersive nonlinear planar waveguides

The multidimensional nonlinear Schrödinger equation governs the spatial and temporal evolution of an optical field inside a nonlinear dispersive medium. Although spatial (diffractive) and temporal (dispersive) effects can be studied independently in a linear medium, they become mutually coupled in a nonlinear medium. We present the results of numerical simulations showing this spatiotemporal coupling for ultrashort pulses propagating in dispersive Kerr media. We investigate how spatiotemporal coupling affects the behavior of the optical field in each of the four regimes defined by the type of group-velocity dispersion (normal or anomalous) and the type of nonlinearity (focusing or defocusing). We show that dispersion, through spatiotemporal coupling, can either enhance or suppress self-focusing and self-defocusing. Similarly, we demonstrate that diffraction can either enhance or suppress pulse compression or broadening. We also discuss how these effects can be controlled with optical phase modulation, such as that provided by a lens (spatial phase modulation) or frequency chirping (temporal phase modulation).  1995 Optical Society of America