Observation of replica symmetry breaking in disordered nonlinear wave propagation. Issue 1 (December 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Pierangeli, Davide; Tavani, Andrea; Di Mei, Fabrizio; Agranat, Aharon; Conti, Claudio; DelRe, Eugenio
• Is Part Of: Nature communications. Volume 8:Issue 1(2017)
• Page Start: 1
• Page End: 7
• Publication Date: 2017-12
• Subjects: Biology -- Periodicals; Physical sciences -- Periodicals; 505
• DOI: 10.1038/s41467-017-01612-2
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2041-1723

Abstract

Abstract A landmark of statistical mechanics, spin-glass theory describes critical phenomena in disordered systems that range from condensed matter to biophysics and social dynamics. The most fascinating concept is the breaking of replica symmetry: identical copies of the randomly interacting system that manifest completely different dynamics. Replica symmetry breaking has been predicted in nonlinear wave propagation, including Bose-Einstein condensates and optics, but it has never been observed. Here, we report the experimental evidence of replica symmetry breaking in optical wave propagation, a phenomenon that emerges from the interplay of disorder and nonlinearity. When mode interaction dominates light dynamics in a disordered optical waveguide, different experimental realizations are found to have an anomalous overlap intensity distribution that signals a transition to an optical glassy phase. The findings demonstrate that nonlinear propagation can manifest features typical of spin-glasses and provide a novel platform for testing so-far unexplored fundamental physical theories for complex systems. Replica symmetry breaking describes identical copies of a randomly interacting system exhibiting different dynamics. Here, Pierangeli et al. observe this critical phenomenon in the optical wave propagation inside a disordered nonlinear waveguide.