Nonlinear waves in physical systems are wave phenomena governed by equations in which the restoring forces or constitutive relations depend nonlinearly on the field amplitudes, leading to amplitude-dependent propagation characteristics and interactions. Unlike linear waves, they can exhibit self-steepening, shock formation, soliton generation, modulational instability, and harmonic generation. Mathematically, they arise from nonlinear partial differential equations such as the Korteweg–de Vries, nonlinear Schrödinger, sine-Gordon, and nonlinear elastic or hydrodynamic equations. Nonlinear waves play a central role in fluid dynamics, plasma physics, nonlinear optics, condensed matter, and elastic media, where they mediate energy transport, pattern formation, and coherent structure dynamics.
A new study led by surfing scientists at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego revealed the physical relationships underlying a pattern familiar to generations of surfers.
Soft Matter
Sep 3, 2026
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Researchers from Graz University of Technology (TU Graz), Harvard and the University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin) have developed an innovative method for coupling light non-linearly. This opens up new possibilities for ...
Nanophysics
Sep 2, 2026
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A research team from Singapore, led by Associate Professor Dawn Tan of the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) and Dr. Luo Xianshu, head of the Silicon Photonics Department at the A*STAR Institute of Microelectronics ...
Optics & Photonics
Aug 24, 2026
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Researchers have demonstrated a solid-state organic laser microcavity fabricated entirely by solution processing. The device operates in the strong light–matter coupling regime, where light and matter form hybrid states called ...
Condensed Matter
Aug 6, 2026
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Modern photonic chips can pack sophisticated optical functions onto devices smaller than a fingernail. They are increasingly used to generate, manipulate and measure light for applications ranging from communications to sensing. ...
Optics & Photonics
Aug 4, 2026
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162
Exceptional points, or EPs for short, are among the phenomena of modern physics. These are special points or locations at which the properties of matter, space or time change. In a new theoretical study, researchers from ...
Optics & Photonics
Jul 23, 2026
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Ultrafast lasers emit pulses lasting only a few hundred femtoseconds (quadrillionths of a second). These flashes of light power applications from precision micromachining to eye surgery to optical frequency combs, the Nobel ...
Optics & Photonics
Jun 3, 2026
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An international team of scientists has developed a new analysis of how sound waves behave, revealing surprising effects that have largely been overlooked for decades. In the new paper in Scientific Reports, which was led ...
General Physics
May 19, 2026
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Simulating the nonlinear optical physics that underlies ultrafast laser systems is computationally demanding—a practical bottleneck in settings that require rapid feedback. A study by researchers at Stanford University, University ...
Optics & Photonics
May 12, 2026
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Conventional spontaneous Raman spectroscopy of interfacial molecules typically requires plasmonic or electronic enhancement, limiting accessible systems. A nonlinear coherent Raman method now enables direct, high sensitivity ...
Nanomaterials
Apr 30, 2026
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