Controlling the intensity statistics of speckle patterns: From normal to subthermal or superthermal distributions
Abstract
We study the propagation of speckle patterns in a tunable nonlinear medium. Starting from a spatial pattern of photons with a normal distribution (speckle field), we characterize the evolution of the radiation to either subthermal or superthermal distributions and demonstrate the control of this evolution through a single parameter. Our experimental control of the local degree of coherence of the output photons is well described by numerical simulations that consider both dispersive and absorptive nonlinear effects. Particularly, we analyze the role of the nonlinear absorption that either enhances or competes with the dispersive effects in the evolution of speckle fields. In some realizations, an asymptotic power law is observed in the photon spatial distribution.
- Publication:
-
Physical Review A
- Pub Date:
- March 2019
- DOI:
- 10.1103/PhysRevA.99.033838
- Bibcode:
- 2019PhRvA..99c3838A