Limit pulses in passive nonlinear absorbers

The propagation of coherent pulses in absorbers with nonlinear refractive index is investigated. It is shown that a term neglected by previous authors places an upper limit on the attainable field strength in steady-state pulses. In ruby with a Cr(3+) doping density of 10 to the 17th power per cu cm, for example, this limit is less than 2,000,000 V/cm.