We demonstrate experimentally and theoretically (both analytically and numerically) a new type of spatial soliton: a rotating “propeller” soliton. This is a composite soliton made of a rotating dipole component jointly trapped with a bell-shaped component. We observe as much as 239° of rotation over 13 mm of propagation (6.5 diffraction lengths).

We present a theory of self-focusing and solitons in photorefractive InP, including the previously unexplained intensity resonance and the resonant enhancement of the space-charge field.