Multi spatial soliton excitation by a single beam in noncritically phase-matched biaxial crystals

Summary form only given. For noncritical phase-matching (NCPM) in a biaxial crystal, the refractive index surfaces for the FW and SH touch each other for propagation along a crystal axis. However, the local radii of curvature of these surfaces are spatially anisotropic. As a result, both the diffraction and the phase mismatch are spatially anisotropic and increase differently with angular detuning from the two crystal axes. This anisotropy determines the direction into which quadratic spatial solitons are generated for incident fundamental beams that carry sufficient energy to generate multiple solitons. Here we report on multiple soliton generation due to spatial anisotropy in NCPM KNbO/sub 3/.