Optical vortices in nonlinear and periodic media

Optical vortices and their counterparts in nonlinear media - vortex solitons, may bring novel functionalities to diverse fields of modern photonics. Because of the unique ability of phase singularities to twist the flow of light, their appearance in the modal fields of photonic elements as well as in the evanescent waves can be associated with many resonant phenomena actively studied in nano-photonic structures. Relations between the fundamental physics of optical vortices and novel effects in photonic, metamaterials and nanostructures will be discussed as well.