Focusing revisited: A renormalization/bifurcation approach

The nonlinear Schrödinger (NLS) equation is a ubiquitous example of an envelope wave equation for conservative, dispersive systems. We revisit here the problem of self-similar focusing of waves in the case of the focusing NLS equation through the prism of a template-based dynamic renormalization technique that factors out self-similarity and yields a bifurcation view of the onset of focusing. As a result, identifying the focusing self-similar solution becomes a steady-state problem. The steady states are subsequently obtained and their linear stability is numerically examined. The calculations are performed in the setting of variable index of refraction, in which the onset of focusing appears as a supercritical bifurcation of a novel type of mixed Hamiltonian-dissipative dynamical system (reminiscent, to some extent, of a pitchfork bifurcation).