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In a recent paper [A. Alberucci, C. Jisha, N. Smyth, and G. Assanto, Phys. Rev. A 91, 013841 (2015)], Alberucci et al. have studied the propagation of bright spatial solitary waves in highly nonlocal media. We find that the main results in that and related papers, concerning soliton shape and dynamics, based on the accessible soliton (AS) approximation, are incorrect; the correct results have already been published by others. These and other inconsistencies in the paper follow from the problems in applying the AS approximation in earlier papers by the group that propagated to the later papers. The accessible soliton theory cannot describe accurately the features and dynamics of solitons in highly nonlocal media., Comment: 2 pages

We investigate numerically light propagation in a single spiral waveguide formed in a nonlinear photorefractive medium for a low spatial frequency of the waveguide rotation. We present the general procedure for finding solitonic solutions in spiral waveguiding structures, as well as the variational approach to calculate soliton parameters analytically. Solitons supported by the spiral waveguide perform robust stable rotational oscillatory motion, with the period predicted by their static characteristics, without any signatures of wave radiation or soliton decay over many rotation periods and diffraction lengths., Comment: 9 pages, 10 figures, submitted to PRA

The virial theorem is a nice property for the linear Schrodinger equation in atomic and molecular physics as it gives an elegant ratio between the kinetic and potential energies and is useful in assessing the quality of numerically computed eigenvalues. If the governing equation is a nonlinear Schrodinger equation with power-law nonlinearity, then a similar ratio can be obtained but there seems no way of getting any eigenvalue estimate. It is surprising as far as we are concerned that when the nonlinearity is either square-root or saturable nonlinearity (not a power-law), one can develop a virial theorem and eigenvalue estimate of nonlinear Schrodinger (NLS) equations in R2 with square-root and saturable nonlinearity, respectively. Furthermore, we show here that the eigenvalue estimate can be used to obtain the 2nd order term (which is of order $ln\Gamma$) of the lower bound of the ground state energy as the coefficient $\Gamma$ of the nonlinear term tends to infinity.

We investigate the propagation of light beams including Hermite-Gauss, Bessel-Gauss and finite energy Airy beams in a linear medium with parabolic potential. Expectedly, the beams undergo oscillation during propagation, but quite unexpectedly they also perform automatic Fourier transform, that is, periodic change from the beam to its Fourier transform and back. The oscillating period of parity-asymmetric beams is twice that of the parity-symmetric beams. In addition to oscillation, the finite-energy Airy beams exhibit periodic inversion during propagation. Based on the propagation in parabolic potential, we introduce a class of optically-interesting beams that are self-Fourier beams -- that is, the beams whose Fourier transforms are the beams themselves., Comment: 11 pages, 5 figures, Ann. Phys., in press

We introduce two-dimensional (2D) linear and nonlinear Talbot effects. They are produced by propagating periodic 2D diffraction patterns and can be visualized as 3D stacks of Talbot carpets. The nonlinear Talbot effect originates from 2D rogue waves and forms in a bulk 3D nonlinear medium. The recurrences of an input rogue wave are observed at the Talbot length and at the half-Talbot length, with a \pi phase shift; no other recurrences are observed. Different from the nonlinear Talbot effect, the linear effect displays the usual fractional Talbot images as well. We also find that the smaller the period of incident rogue waves, the shorter the Talbot length. Increasing the beam intensity increases the Talbot length, but above a threshold this leads to a catastrophic self-focusing phenomenon which destroys the effect. We also find that the Talbot recurrence can be viewed as a self-Fourier transform of the initial periodic beam that is automatically performed during propagation. In particular, linear Talbot effect can be viewed as a fractional self-Fourier transform, whereas the nonlinear Talbot effect can be viewed as the regular self-Fourier transform. Numerical simulations demonstrate that the rogue wave initial condition is sufficient but not necessary for the observation of the effect. It may also be observed from other periodic inputs, provided they are set on a finite background. The 2D effect may find utility in the production of 3D photonic crystals., Comment: 11 pages, 5 figures

We apply the variational approach to solitons in highly nonlocal nonlinear media in $D=1,2,3$ dimensions. We compare results obtained by the variational approach with those obtained in the accessible soliton approximation, by considering the same system of equations in the same spatial region and under the same boundary conditions. To assess the accuracy of these approximations, we also compare them with the numerical solution of the equations. We discover that the variational highly nonlocal approximation provides more accurate results and as such is more appropriate solution than the accessible soliton approximation., Comment: arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:1311.6840

We discuss differences between the variational approach to solitons and the accessible soliton approximaion in a highly nonlocal nonlinear medium. We compare results of both approximations by considering the same system of equations in the same spatial region, under the same boundary conditions. We also compare these approximations with the numerical solution of the equations. We find that the variational highly nonlocal approximation provides more accurate results and as such is more appropriate solution than the accessible soliton approximation. The accessible soliton model offers a radical simplification in the treatment of highly nonlocal nonlinear media, with easy comprehension and convenient parallels to quantum harmonic oscillator, however with a hefty price tag: a systematic numerical discrepancy of up to 100% with the numerical results.

We prove the existence of ground state in a multidimensional nonlinear Schrodinger model of paraxial beam propagation in isotropic local media with saturable nonlinearity. Such ground states exist in the form of bright counterpropagating solitons. From the proof, a general threshold condition on the beam coupling constant for the existence of such fundamental solitons follows.

We question physical existence of shape invariant solitons in three dimensional nematic liquid crystals. Using modified Petviashvili's method for finding eigenvalues and eigenfunctions, we determine shape invariant solitons in a realistic physical model that includes the highly nonlocal nature of the liquid crystal system. We check the stability of such solutions by propagating them for long distances. We establish that any noise added to the medium or to the fundamental solitons induces them to breathe, rendering them practically unobservable., Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures