Experimental Observation of the Spontaneous Emission of a Space–Time Wavepacket in a Multimode Optical Fiber

We provide a complete analysis, from theory to experiment, of the spontaneous emergence of a discretized conical wave of X-type (i.e., a localized 2D+1 space-time wavepacket) when an intense ultrashort pulse nonlinearly propagates in a multimode fiber. In particular, we reveal that this spatiotemporal phenomenon corresponds to broadband intermodal dispersive wave emission from an unsteady localized wave structure formed during nonlinear propagation. Theoretical phase-matching predictions are experimentally and numerically confirmed in a commercially available step-index multimode fiber. Our results provide a general understanding of phase-matched radiations emitted by nonlinear waves in multidimensional dispersive optical system.