arXiv:2102.04749 · Optica

Chiral light–matter interactions in hot vapor-cladded waveguides

Roy Zektzer, Eliran Talker, Yefim Barash, Noa Mazurski, Uriel Levy

Published Dec 20, 2018• 23 citations

Abstract

Recently, there is growing interest in integrating alkali vapors with nanoscale photonic structures, such as nano-waveguides, resonators and nanoantennas. Nanoscale confinement of electromagnetic fields may introduce a longitudinal electric field component, giving rise to circularly polarized modes which are essential for diverse applications involving vapor and light, such as chirality and non-reciprocity. Hereby, we have designed, fabricated and characterized a miniaturized vapor cell that is integrated with optical waveguides that are designed to generate a peculiar circular-like polarization. Taking advantage of this phenomenon, we demonstrate a spectral shift in the atomic absorption signatures at varying magnetic fields, and significant isolation between forward and backward propagating waves in our atomic-cladded waveguide. Our results pave the way for the utilization of chip-scale integrated atomic devices in applications such as optical isolation and high spatial resolution magnetometry.

DOI: 10.1364/optica.6.000015

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