Rogue waves are abnormally large steep waves that appear unexpectedly in the open ocean. These waves are rare and occur much more commonly than predicted by conventional wave models. Although the formation of these extreme waves is not fully understood it is widely believed that nonlinearity plays a central role. In the past the study of rogue waves has focused on hydrodynamic studies and experiments. However there are other physical systems that possess similar nonlinear characteristics and may also support rogue waves. UCLA researchers have discovered that rogue waves can arise in optics and can be harnessed for applications.
1) Supercontinuum light can be generated with much lower power requirements 2) Provides for lower noise output that is more stable than current methods 3) Improves performance of already established supercontinuum applications 4) Currently the only physical system that can predict and generate rogue-like waves