Interplay of external gradients and material defects in the dynamics of semiconductor cavity solitons

Cavity solitons (CSs) are localized intensity peaks that can form in a homogeneous background of radiation. They are generated by shining laser pulses into optical cavities that contain a nonlinear medium driven by a coherent field (holding beam). The ability to switch CSs on and off and to control their location and motion makes them interesting as potential 'pixels' for reconfigurable arrays or all-optical processing units.