Coherent beam combination at interfaces via surface polariton effects.

Abstract

We examine theoretically the structure and properties of index gratings created by the interference pattern formed by a laser beam and a surface polariton at an interface coated with a thin layer of an optical Kerr material. Theory suggests that the energy-transfer characteristics of these gratings differ considerably from those created in the bulk material. This statement is underscored by a the prediction that energy transfer will occur for degenerate beams in the presence of a nonlinearly responding reflecting surface even though there is no photorefractive material present.