Investigating the behavior of an atom in response to the applied electric field when the latter frequency is in resonance with the natural frequency of the atom is an interesting subject. Near resonance, some of the most interesting optical phenomena such as dispersion, and absorption are more pronounced. Moreover, considering resonant and near resonant interaction of light with two-level atoms, uncovers fascinating physical phenomena such as area theorem and self-induced transparency describing stable pulse propagation regimes in which the pulses maintain their identity. Existence of these optical structures in on-resonance optical media has not been investigated in detail. In this book, the on-resonance interaction of optical field with atoms is considered and the formation of several novel self-similar and kink waves in linear and nonlinear resonant media is discovered and theoretically explored. This book should be especially useful to professionals in Optics and Optoelectronics fields, or anyone else who may be considering utilizing near resonance optical structures such as similaritons, solitons, or optical kinks. ukryj opis