On the Whitham equations for the defocusing nonlinear Schrodinger equation with step initial data

The behavior of solutions of the finite-genus Whitham equations for the weak dispersion limit of the defocusing nonlinear Schrodinger equation is investigated analytically and numerically for piecewise-constant initial data. In particular, the dynamics of constant-amplitude initial conditions with one or more frequency jumps (i.e., piecewise linear phase) are considered. It is shown analytically and numerically that, for finite times, regions of arbitrarily high genus can be produced; asymptotically with time, however, the solution can be divided into expanding regions which are either of genus-zero, genus-one or genus-two type, their precise arrangement depending on the specifics of the initial datum given. This behavior should be compared to that of the Korteweg-deVries equation, where the solution is devided into the regions which are either genus-zero or genus-one asymptotically. Finally, the potential application of these results to the generation of short optical pulses is discussed: the method proposed takes advantage of nonlinear compression via appropriate frequency modulation, and allows control of both the pulse amplitude and its width, as well as the distance along the fiber at which the pulse is produced.