Optical bistability in an excited nonlinear corrugated waveguide

An analysis is made of anomalous reflection of light from the surface of a corrugated waveguide when the refractive index of the waveguide layer depends on the radiation power. It is shown that bistable reflection of light is possible if the deviation from the optimal excitation of the waveguide is selected suitably. Estimates are obtained of the power required for bistable operation in multilayer waveguide structures composed partly of GaAs–AlGaAs superlattices.