All-optical power limiting in waveguides with periodically distributed Kerr-like non-linearity

A slab waveguide with an embedded non-linear grating is considered as an all-optical power-limiting device. The limiting action is based on the power losses at boundaries between grating sections, where a mode-mismatch results from the self-focusing of the fundamental mode in each non-linear section. Time-harmonic and optical pulse propagation are both modelled numerically by finite-difference techniques to demonstrate the behaviour of the device.