Atomic excitation trapping in dissimilar chirally coupled atomic arrays

Abstract

An atomic array coupled to a one-dimensional nanophotonic waveguide allows photon-mediated dipole-dipole interactions and nonreciprocal decay channels. Such an array possesses many intriguing quantum phenomena due to its distinctive and emergent quantum correlations. In this atom-waveguide quantum system, we theoretically investigate the atomic excitation dynamics and its transport property, specifically at an interface of dissimilar atomic arrays with different interparticle distances. We find that the atomic excitation dynamics is highly dependent on the interparticle distances of dissimilar arrays and the directionality of nonreciprocal couplings. By tuning these parameters, a dominant excitation reflection can be achieved at the interface of the arrays in the single excitation case. We further study two effects on the transport property—of external drive and of single excitation delocalization over multiple atoms—where we manifest a rich interplay between multisite excitation and the relative phase in determining the transport properties. Finally, we present an intriguing trapping effect of atomic excitation by designing multiple zones of dissimilar arrays. Similar to the single excitations, multiple excitations are reflected from the array interfaces and trapped as well, although complete trapping of many excitations together is relatively challenging at long time due to a faster combined decay rate. Our results can provide insights into nonequilibrium quantum dynamics in dissimilar arrays, and they can shed light on confining and controlling quantum registers useful for quantum information processing. Published by the American Physical Society 2024