arXiv subjects

Mark J. Ablowitz

Publications and source records attributed to Mark J. Ablowitz.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Topological routing in Chern insulators

Chern insulator systems are realizable in numerous physical systems and can support robust nonreciprocal transmission of energy. A routing functionality constructed from two counter-oriented Chern insulator regions, using coupled Haldane type systems is proposed. By adjusting the strength of a magnetic field and the frequency of an antenna source, it possible to steer the flow of energy: completely to the left, completely to the right, or split. Alternatively, two sources can be used to direct the flow of energy. This formulation has the potential to serve as a robust and reconfigurable component in optical transmission.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2025

Spiral Wave Solutions in Water Waves

Spiral wave solutions are found in linear and weakly nonlinear irrotational water wave equations. These unsteady spiral waves evolve from suitable initial conditions; they are not induced by external forcing. In the linear case, a long-time asymptotic result is obtained via the method of stationary phase. The asymptotic approximation is found to be in good agreement with the exact solution and reveals hyperbolic spiral structure. Numerical simulations show that these spiral waves persist in the presence of weak nonlinearity. While spiral solutions are frequently found in excitable media governed by reaction-diffusion systems, they comprise a new class of interesting two space one time dimensional solutions in fundamental linear and nonlinear dispersive wave systems.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2025

On the integrable six-wave interaction system and its space-time shifted reduction

The multi-dimensional six-wave interaction system is derived in the context of nonlinear optics. Starting from Maxwell's equations, a reduced system of equations governing the dynamics of the electric and polarization fields are obtained. Using a space-time multi-scale asymptotic expansion, a hierarchy of coupled equations describing the spatio-temporal evolution of the perturbed electric and polarization fields are derived. The leading order equation admits a six-wave ansatz satisfying a triad resonance condition. By removing secular terms at next order, a first order in space and time quadratically nonlinear coupled six-wave interaction system is obtained. This resulting system is tied to its integrable counterpart which was postulated by Ablowitz and Haberman in the 1970s. A reduction to a space-time shifted nonlocal three-wave system is presented. The resulting system is solved using the inverse scattering transform, which employs nonlocal symmetries between the associated eigenfunctions and scattering data; soliton solutions are then obtained. Finally, an infinite set of conservation laws for the six-wave system is derived; one is shown to be connected to its Hamiltonian structure.

nlin.SI↗

arXiv2024

Inverse scattering transform for continuous and discrete space-time shifted integrable equations

Nonlocal integrable partial differential equations possessing a spatial or temporal reflection have constituted an active research area for the past decade. Recently, more general classes of these nonlocal equations have been proposed, wherein the nonlocality appears as a combination of a shift (by a real or a complex parameter) and a reflection. This new shifting parameter manifests itself in the inverse scattering transform (IST) as an additional phase factor in an analogous way to the classical Fourier transform. In this paper, the IST is analyzed in detail for several examples of such systems. Particularly, time, space, and space-time shifted nonlinear Schrödinger (NLS) and space-time shifted modified Korteweg-de Vries (mKdV) equations are studied. Additionally, the semi-discrete IST is developed for the time, space and space-time shifted variants of the Ablowitz-Ladik integrable discretization of the NLS. One soliton solutions are constructed for all continuous and discrete cases.

nlin.SI↗

arXiv2023

Switching via Wave Interaction in Topological Photonic Lattices

A honeycomb Floquet lattice with helically rotating waveguides and an interface separating two counter-propagating subdomains is analyzed. Two topologically protected localized waves propagate unidirectionally along the interface. Switching can occur when these interface modes reach the edge of the lattice and the light splits into waves traveling in two opposite directions. The incoming mode, traveling along the interface, can be routed entirely or partially along either lattice edge with the switching direction based on a suitable mixing of the interface modes.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2022

Nonlinear optical waveguide lattices: Asymptotic analysis, solitons, and topological insulators

In recent years, there has been considerable interest in the study of wave propagation in nonlinear photonic lattices. The interplay between nonlinearity and periodicity has led researchers to manipulate light and discover new and interesting phenomena such as new classes of localized modes, usually referred to as solitons, and novel surface states that propagate robustly. A field where both nonlinearity and periodicity arises naturally is nonlinear optics. But there are other areas where waves propagating on background lattices play an important role, including photonic crystal fibers and Bose-Einstein condensation. In this review article the propagation of wave envelopes in one and two-dimensional periodic lattices associated with additional potential in the nonlinear Schrodinger (NLS) equation, termed lattice NLS equations, are studied. A discrete reduction, known as the tight-binding approximation, is employed to find the linear dispersion relation and the equations governing nonlinear discrete envelopes for two-dimensional simple periodic lattices and two-dimensional non-simple honeycomb lattices. In the limit under which the envelopes vary slowly, continuous envelope equations are derived from the discrete system. The coefficients of the linear evolution system are related to the dispersion relation in both the discrete and continuous cases. For simple lattices, the continuous systems are NLS type equations. In honeycomb lattices, in certain cases, the continuous system is found to be nonlinear Dirac equations. Finally, it is possible to realize so-called topological insulator systems in an optical waveguide setting. The modes supported by these systems are associated with spectral topological invariants and, remarkably, can propagate without backscatter from lattice defects.

nlin.PS↗

arXiv2022

Soliton-mean field interaction in Korteweg-de Vries dispersive hydrodynamics

The propagation of localized solitons in the presence of large-scale waves is a fundamental problem, both physically and mathematically, with applications in fluid dynamics, nonlinear optics and condensed matter physics. Here, the evolution of a soliton as it interacts with a rarefaction wave or a dispersive shock wave, examples of slowly varying and rapidly oscillating dispersive mean fields, for the Korteweg-de Vries equation is studied. Step boundary conditions give rise to either a rarefaction wave (step up) or a dispersive shock wave (step down). When a soliton interacts with one of these mean fields, it can either transmit through (tunnel) or become embedded (trapped) inside, depending on its initial amplitude and position. A comprehensive review of three separate analytical approaches is undertaken to describe these interactions. First, a basic soliton perturbation theory is introduced that is found to capture the solution dynamics for soliton-rarefaction wave interaction in the small dispersion limit. Next, multiphase Whitham modulation theory and its finite-gap description are used to describe soliton-rarefaction wave and soliton-dispersive shock wave interactions. Lastly, a spectral description and an exact solution of the initial value problem is obtained through the Inverse Scattering Transform. For transmitted solitons, far-field asymptotics reveal the soliton phase shift through either type of wave mentioned above. In the trapped case, there is no proper eigenvalue in the spectral description, implying that the evolution does not involve a proper soliton solution. These approaches are consistent, agree with direct numerical simulation, and accurately describe different aspects of solitary wave-mean field interaction

nlin.PS↗

arXiv2022

Fractional Integrable and Related Discrete Nonlinear Schrödinger Equations

Integrable fractional equations such as the fractional Korteweg-deVries and nonlinear Schrödinger equations are key to the intersection of nonlinear dynamics and fractional calculus. In this manuscript, the first discrete/differential difference equation of this type is found, the fractional integrable discrete nonlinear Schrödinger equation. This equation is linearized; special soliton solutions are found whose peak velocities exhibit more complicated behavior than other previously obtained fractional integrable equations. This equation is compared with the closely related fractional averaged discrete nonlinear Schrödinger equation which has simpler structure than the integrable case. For positive fractional parameter and small amplitude waves, the soliton solutions of the integrable and averaged equations have similar behavior.

nlin.SI↗

arXiv2022

Fractional Integrable Nonlinear Soliton Equations

Nonlinear integrable equations serve as a foundation for nonlinear dynamics, and fractional equations are well known in anomalous diffusion. We connect these two fields by presenting the discovery of a new class of integrable fractional nonlinear evolution equations describing dispersive transport in fractional media. These equations can be constructed from nonlinear integrable equations using a widely generalizable mathematical process utilizing completeness relations, dispersion relations, and inverse scattering transform techniques. As examples, this general method is used to characterize fractional extensions to two physically relevant, pervasive integrable nonlinear equations: the Korteweg-de Vries and nonlinear Schrödinger equations. These equations are shown to predict super-dispersive transport of non-dissipative solitons in fractional media.

nlin.SI↗

arXiv2022

Integrable Fractional Modified Korteweg-de Vries, Sine-Gordon, and Sinh-Gordon Equations

The inverse scattering transform allows explicit construction of solutions to many physically significant nonlinear wave equations. Notably, this method can be extended to fractional nonlinear evolution equations characterized by anomalous dispersion using completeness of suitable eigenfunctions of the associated linear scattering problem. In anomalous diffusion, the mean squared displacement is proportional to $t^α$, $α>0$, while in anomalous dispersion, the speed of localized waves is proportional to $A^α$, where $A$ is the amplitude of the wave. Fractional extensions of the modified Korteweg-deVries (mKdV), sine-Gordon (sineG) and sinh-Gordon (sinhG) and associated hierarchies are obtained. Using symmetries present in the linear scattering problem, these equations can be connected with a scalar family of nonlinear evolution equations of which fractional mKdV (fmKdV), fractional sineG (fsineG), and fractional sinhG (fsinhG) are special cases. Completeness of solutions to the scalar problem is obtained and, from this, the nonlinear evolution equation is characterized in terms of a spectral expansion. In particular, fmKdV, fsineG, and fsinhG are explicitly written. One-soliton solutions are derived for fmKdV and fsineG using the inverse scattering transform and these solitons are shown to exhibit anomalous dispersion.

nlin.SI↗

arXiv2021

On the Whitham system for the (2+1)-dimensional nonlinear Schrödinger equation

We derive the Whitham modulation equations for the nonlinear Schrödinger equation in the plane (2d NLS) with small dispersion. The modulation equations are derived in terms of both physical and Riemann variables; the latter yields equations of hydrodynamic type. The complete 2d NLS Whitham system consists of six dynamical equations in evolutionary form and two constraints. As an application, we determine the linear stability of one-dimensional traveling waves. In both the elliptic and hyperbolic case, the traveling waves are found to be unstable. This result is consistent with all previous investigations of such stability by other methods. These results are supported by direct numerical calculations.

nlin.PS↗

arXiv2021

Transverse Instability of Rogue Waves

Rogue waves are abnormally large waves which appear unexpectedly and have attracted considerable attention, particularly in recent years. The one space, one time (1+1) nonlinear Schrödinger equation is often used to model rogue waves; it is an envelope description of plane waves and admits the so-called Pergerine and Kuznetov-Ma soliton solutions. However, in deep water waves and certain electromagnetic systems where there are two significant transverse dimensions, the 2+1 hyperbolic nonlinear Schrodinger equation is the appropriate wave envelope description. Here we show that these rogue wave solutions suffer from strong transverse instability at long and short frequencies. Moreover, the stability of the Peregrine soliton is found to coincide with that of the background plane wave. These results indicate that, when applicable, transverse dimensions must be taken into account when investigating rogue wave pheneomena.

nlin.PS↗

arXiv2021

Peierls-Nabarro barrier effect in nonlinear Floquet topological insulators

The Peierls-Nabarro barrier is a discrete effect that frequently occurs in discrete nonlinear systems. A signature of the barrier is the slowing and eventual stopping of discrete solitary waves. This work examines intense electromagnetic waves propagating through a periodic honeycomb lattice of helically-driven waveguides, which serves as a paradigmatic Floquet topological insulator. Here it is shown that discrete topologically protected edge modes do not suffer from the typical slowdown associated with the Peierls-Nabarro barrier. Instead, as a result of their topological nature, the modes always move forward and redistribute their energy: a narrow (discrete) mode transforms into a wide effectively continuous mode. On the other hand, a discrete edge mode that is not topologically protected does eventually slow down and stop propagating. Topological modes that are initially narrow modes naturally tend to wide envelope states that are described by a generalized nonlinear Schrodinger equation. These results provide insight into the nature of nonlinear topological insulators and their application.

nlin.PS↗

arXiv2020

Whitham equations and phase shifts for the Korteweg-deVries equation

The semi-classical Korteweg-deVries equation for step-like data is considered with a small parameter in front of the highest derivative. Using perturbation analysis Whitham theory is constructed to higher order. This allows the order one phase and the complete leading order solution to be obtained; the results are confirmed by extensive numerical calculations.

nlin.PS↗

arXiv2020

Discrete Approximation of Topologically Protected Modes in Magneto-Optical Media

Topologically protected waves in the linearly polarized Maxwell's equations with gyrotropic, magneto-optic media were studied a decade ago both computationally and experimentally. This paper develops a robust tight-binding model for this system that makes careful use of Wannier function representations. The model provides very good approximations to the underlying band structure. When solved on a semi-infinite strip, it produces exponentially localized edge modes whose corresponding eigenvalues span the frequency band gaps. A set of coupled differential equations are derived which allows one to find how the electromagnetic field propagates unidirectionally, without backscatter from defects. Furthermore, the discrete model predicts topologically protected edge modes with nontrivial Chern number which are consistent with direct simulation.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2019

Integrable nonlocal asymptotic reductions of physically significant nonlinear equations

Quasi-monochromatic complex reductions of a number of physically important equations are obtained. Starting from the cubic nonlinear Klein-Gordon (NLKG), the Korteweg-deVries (KdV) and water wave equations, it is shown that the leading order asymptotic approximation can be transformed to the well-known integrable AKNS system [6] associated with second order (in space) nonlinear wave equations. This in turn establishes, for the first time, an important physical connection between the recently discovered nonlocal integrable reductions of the AKNS system and physically interesting equations. Reductions include the parity-time, reverse space-time and reverse time nonlocal nonlinear Schrodinger equations.

nlin.SI↗

arXiv2019

Topological insulators in longitudinally driven waveguides: Lieb and Kagome lattices

Topological insulators are studied via tight-binding approximations of longitudinally driven photonic lattices with three lattice sites per unit cell. Two cases are considered in detail: Lieb and Kagome lattices. The lattice is decomposed into three sublattices each of which are allowed move independently of one another. Emphasis is placed on periodic driving induced by laser-etched helical coils along the direction of propagation. The linear Floquet bands are constructed for various inter-sublattice rotation patterns such as: different radii, different frequency, phase offset and quasi one-dimensional motion. Depending on the nature of the band structure, bulk spectral bands with nonzero Chern number are found to support topologically protected edge states which can move unidirectionally. In this case, the modes move scatter-free around defects due to underlying topological protection. Intriguing mode dynamics are found including bi-directional topological modes and bulk-edge leakage i.e. excitation of bulk modes at a defect for edge modes with dispersion frequencies nearby the bulk bands. Finally, certain nonlinear edge modes are also found to propagate unidirectionally and scatter-free around lattice defects.

nlin.PS↗

arXiv2018

On the Whitham system for the radial nonlinear Schrödinger equation

Dispersive shock waves (DSWs) of the defocusing radial nonlinear Schrödinger (rNLS) equation in two spatial dimensions are studied. This equation arises naturally in Bose-Einstein condensates, water waves and nonlinear optics. A unified nonlinear WKB approach, equally applicable to integrable or nonintegrable partial differential equations, is used to find the rNLS Whitham modulation equation system in both physical and hydrodynamic type variables. The description of DSWs obtained via Whitham theory is compared with direct rNLS numerics; the results demonstrate very good quantitative agreement. On the other hand, as expected, comparison with the corresponding DSW solutions of the one-dimensional NLS equation exhibits significant qualitative and quantitative differences.

nlin.PS↗