Guiding ultraslow weak-light bullets with Airy beams in a coherent atomic system

Abstract

We investigate the possibility of guiding stable ultraslow weak-light bullets by using Airy beams in a cold, lifetime-broadened four-level atomic system via electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT). We show that under EIT condition the light bullet with ultraslow propagating velocity and extremely low generation power formed by the balance between diffraction and nonlinearity in the probe field can be not only stabilized but also steered by the assisted field. In particular, when the assisted field is taken to be an Airy beam, the light bullet can be trapped into the main lobe of the Airy beam, propagate ultraslowly in longitudinal direction, accelerate in transverse directions, and move along a parabolic trajectory. We further show that the light bullet can bypass an obstacle when guided by two sequential Airy beams. A technique for generating ultraslow helical weak-light bullets is also proposed.