Abstract

We investigated amplitudes, phases, and their distributions in the vicinity of the onset of oscillation. The experiment consists of a nonlinear Fabry-Pérot resonator filled with sodium atoms in a buffer-gas atmosphere that are pumped by cw light near the D₁ line. Under the influence of an external magnetic field, the transmitted light intensity has been shown before to exhibit bi- and tristability, self-oscillations, and chaos.¹ For our measurements, we choose the onset of the first oscillation from steady state, and the onset of the subharmonic at the first period-doubling threshold.

© 1992 Optical Society of America