title: Optical spatial solitons and modulation instabilities in transparent entangled polymer solutions.
abstract: Fully transparent nondilute polydiene solutions exhibit optical nonlinearities when irradiated by a low-power cw laser in the visible. The formation of optical spatial solitons is imaged through phase contrast microscopy. Both (2+1)D and (1+1)D modulational instabilities are evidenced as 2D and 1D arrays of linear filaments formed by beam defocusing or by using a cylindrical lens. The origin of the nonlinearity remains elusive.
authors.affiliation: Foundation for Research and Technology of Hellas, Institute of Electronic Structure and Laser, Box 1527, 71110 Heraklion Crete, Greece.
authors.forename: Manos
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Anyfantakis
authors.forename: Benoit
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Loppinet
authors.forename: George
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Fytas
authors.forename: Stergios
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pispas