Different Types of Bistability upon Multiwave Mixing in a Nonlinear Interferometer

Abstract

Interaction of light beams in nonlinear Fabry-Perot interferometer has been theoretically studied in conditions of rescattering from the difraction dynamic structures formed in the medium volume. Consideration has been given to the scheme for the symmetric propagation of two light beams in the interferometer and the scheme for the normal incidence of a reference beam upon oblique incidence of the signal one. It has been demonstrated that one can realize optical bistability of the S-, N-, butterfy-type and, owing to the pitchfork bifurcation, asymmetric modes of bistability.