Hodographic Vortices

Abstract

Vortices are screw phase dislocations associated with helicoidal wave-fronts. In nonlinear optics, vortices arise as singular solutions to the phase-intensity equations of geometric optics. They exist for a general class of nonlinear response functions. In this sense, vortices possess a universal character. Analysis of geometric optics equations on the hodograph plane leads to deformed vortex type solutions that are sensitive to the form of the nonlinearity. The case of a Kerr type nonlinear response is discussed as a specific example.