Self-Focusing and Optical Bistability in Cd$\text{}_{1-x}$Mn$\text{}_{x}$Te

Thermally induced self-focusing of laser beam and optical bistability in CdMnTe at room temperature has been investigated. Photothermal focal length as a function of intensity of laser radiation has been measured in Cd$\text{}_{1-x}$Mn$\text{}_{x}$Te for 0.3 ≤ x ≤ 0.6. The time-dependence of the transmitted power for various laser intensities has been investigated and the switching from the transparent to dark state has been observed. For the first time the optical bistable characteristic has been measured in CdMnTe. The results indicate that CdMnTe is a suitable material for cavityless, large contrast, thermally induced absorptive bistable operation in visible region.