Abstract

We study nonlinear surface modes in two-dimensional anisotropic periodic photonic lattices and demonstrate that, in a sharp contrast to one-dimensional discrete surface solitons, the mode threshold power is lower at the surface, and two-dimensional discrete solitons can be generated easier near the lattice corners and edges. We analyze the crossover between effectively one- and two-dimensional regimes of the surface-mediated beam localization in the lattice. © 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.