Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Log inSign up
Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Blog
Job Board
Q3AS

© 2026 Aqora Quantum S.A.S.

TermsPrivacyLegal Notice

arXiv:2604.09097 · Physical Review A

Ultrafast all-optical switching via a supersolid phase transition of light

José Luis Figueiredo, José Tito Mendonça, Hugo Terças

Published Sep 9, 2026• 0 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

We propose ultrafast all-optical switching exploiting the bistability between a spatially uniform photon superfluid and a spontaneously ordered supersolid in a driven-dissipative microcavity. The key ingredient is a tunable nonlocal photon--photon interaction engineered by embedding a high-mobility two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) inside the cavity. A drift current displaces the Fermi disk, imparting a negative region to the Lindhard interaction kernel at finite wavevectors and triggering a roton instability. The resulting bistable $S$-curve supports a write--hold--erase protocol in which short optical pulses toggle the system between branches with a switching contrast of order 120~dB in our simulations. The hysteretic ON state persists under a constant sub-threshold drive after the write pulse is removed, realizing an all-optical bistable memory. Since the photon field couples additively to each embedded quantum well, stacking layers with distinct drift angles allows the roton profile to be engineered with higher-order symmetries, imprinting richer spatial order on the supersolid and enabling nonbinary generalizations of the switch. Operating in the ultrafast, sub-fJ regime, this platform outperforms most existing all-optical switches in contrast and reconfigurability.

DOI
10.1103/sbsn-1fvr

Related papers

Supersolid light in a semiconductor microcavity

José Luis Figueiredo, José Tito Mendonça, Hugo Terças

Supersolidity - simultaneous superfluid flow and crystalline order - has been realized in quantum atomic systems but remains unexplored in purely photonic platforms operating at weak light-matter coupling. We predict a supersolid phase of light in a plasma-filled optical microcavity, where photons acquire effective mass and interact via nonlocal, plasma-mediated nonlinearities. By deriving a Gross-Pitaevskii equation with a tunable photon-photon interaction kernel, we show that under coherent driving the cavity light field can spontaneously crystallize into a supersolid lattice via modulational instability. Crucially, this supersolid arises from a weak photon-electron coupling enabled by virtual electronic transitions, and it does not require hybrid polariton formation. Using doped semiconductor microcavities, we identify feasible conditions (electron densities $\sim 10^{10}- 10^{11}~\mathrm{cm}^{-2}$ and optical intensities $\sim 10^{2}-10^{4}~\mathrm{W/cm}^{2}$) for experimental realization. This work establishes plasmonic cavities as a platform for correlated photonic matter with emergent quantum order.

arXiv:2509.09007•Physical Review A•Feb 25, 2026•1 citation

Optical memory based on ultrafast wavelength switching in a bistable microlaser

Sergei V. Zhukovsky, Dmitry N. Chigrin

We propose an optical memory cell based on ultrafast wavelength switching in coupled-cavity microlasers, featuring bistability between modes separated by several nanometers. A numerical implementation is demonstrated by simulating a two-dimensional photonic crystal microlaser. Switching times of less than 10 ps, switching energy around 15-30 fJ, and on-off contrast of more than 40 dB are achieved. Theoretical guidelines for optimizing the performance of the memory cell in terms of switching time and energy are drawn.

arXiv:0906.4721•Optics Letters•Oct 23, 2009•8 citations

Fast bistable all-optical switch and memory on a silicon photonic crystal on-chip

Takasumi Tanabe, Masaya Notomi, Satoshi Mitsugi +2 more

We demonstrate extremely low-power all-optical bistability by utilizing silicon photonic crystal nanocavities, based on the plasma effect of carriers generated by two-photon absorption. Owing to the high quality factor and the small volume of the nanocavities, the photon density inside the cavity becomes extremely high, which leads to a large reduction in operation power. Optical bistable operation in a single nanocavity permits optical read-write memory operation, which opens the possibility of an integrated optical logic circuit on a single chip, based on photonic crystals. The demonstrated bistable threshold power is 0.4 mW with a set pulse energy of 74 fJ, at a switching speed of <100 ps.

Optics Letters•Oct 1, 2005•325 citations

Optical memories and switching dynamics of counterpropagating light states in microresonators

Leonardo Del Bino, Niall Moroney, Pascal Del’Haye

The Kerr nonlinearity can be a key enabler for many digital photonic circuits as it allows access to bistable states needed for all-optical memories and switches. A common technique is to use the Kerr shift to control the resonance frequency of a resonator and use it as a bistable, optically-tunable filter. However, this approach works only in a narrow power and frequency range or requires the use of an auxiliary laser. An alternative approach is to use the asymmetric bistability between counterpropagating light states resulting from the interplay between self- and cross-phase modulation, which allows light to enter a ring resonator in just one direction. Logical high and low states can be represented and stored as the direction of circulation of light, and controlled by modulating the input power. Here we study the switching speed, operating laser frequency and power range, and contrast ratio of such a device. We reach a bitrate of 2 Mbps in our proof-of-principle device over an optical frequency range of 1 GHz and an operating power range covering more than one order of magnitude. We also calculate that integrated photonic circuits could exhibit bitrates of the order of Gbps, paving the way for the realization of robust and simple all-optical memories, switches, routers and logic gates that can operate at a single laser frequency with no additional electrical power.

arXiv:2002.02954•Optics Express•Dec 21, 2020•35 citations

Double-cavity optical bistability and all-optical switching in four-level N-type atomic system

Yu-Yuan Chen, Yanan Li, Ren-Gang Wan

We analyze the absorptive and hybrid absorptive–dispersive double-cavity optical bistability behavior in a four-level N-type atomic system driven by two optical fields circulating inside two independently unidirectional ring cavities and a trigger field outside the cavities. In this system, the two-photon absorption and cross Kerr nonlinearity play significant roles in the formation of bistability and can be controlled efficiently due to the quantum interference effect, and then the resulting nonlinear behavior exhibits different features from the two/three-level schemes. It is shown that the threshold values and hysteresis cycle width of the bistable curve can be manipulated via the adjustment of the system parameters. Meanwhile, we also obtain double-beam optical multistability. When adding positive and negative pulses to the cavity input, all-optical steady-state switching for the two cavity outputs can be achieved simultaneously. Therefore, the proposed scheme may have potential applications in all-optical communication and computing.

Journal of the Optical Society of America B•May 1, 2018•9 citations

The Dicke Quantum Phase Transition in a Superfluid Gas Coupled to an Optical Cavity

Kristian Baumann, Christine Guerlin, Ferdinand Brennecke +1 more

A phase transition describes the sudden change of state in a physical system, such as the transition between a fluid and a solid. Quantum gases provide the opportunity to establish a direct link between experiment and generic models which capture the underlying physics. A fundamental concept to describe the collective matter-light interaction is the Dicke model which has been predicted to show an intriguing quantum phase transition. Here we realize the Dicke quantum phase transition in an open system formed by a Bose-Einstein condensate coupled to an optical cavity, and observe the emergence of a self-organized supersolid phase. The phase transition is driven by infinitely long-ranged interactions between the condensed atoms. These are induced by two-photon processes involving the cavity mode and a pump field. We show that the phase transition is described by the Dicke Hamiltonian, including counter-rotating coupling terms, and that the supersolid phase is associated with a spontaneously broken spatial symmetry. The boundary of the phase transition is mapped out in quantitative agreement with the Dicke model. The work opens the field of quantum gases with long-ranged interactions, and provides access to novel quantum phases.

•Dec 16, 2009•2 citations
We propose ultrafast all-optical switching exploiting the bistability between a spatially uniform photon superfluid and a spontaneously ordered supersolid in a driven-dissipative microcavity. The key ingredient is a tunable nonlocal photon--photon interaction engineered by embedding a high-mobility two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) inside the cavity. A drift current displaces the Fermi disk, imparting a negative region to the Lindhard interaction kernel at finite wavevectors and triggering a roton instability. The resulting bistable SSS-curve supports a write--hold--erase protocol in which short optical pulses toggle the system between branches with a switching contrast of order 120~dB in our simulations. The hysteretic ON state persists under a constant sub-threshold drive after the write pulse is removed, realizing an all-optical bistable memory. Since the photon field couples additively to each embedded quantum well, stacking layers with distinct drift angles allows the roton profile to be engineered with higher-order symmetries, imprinting richer spatial order on the supersolid and enabling nonbinary generalizations of the switch. Operating in the ultrafast, sub-fJ regime, this platform outperforms most existing all-optical switches in contrast and reconfigurability.
Supersolidity - simultaneous superfluid flow and crystalline order - has been realized in quantum atomic systems but remains unexplored in purely photonic platforms operating at weak light-matter coupling. We predict a supersolid phase of light in a plasma-filled optical microcavity, where photons acquire effective mass and interact via nonlocal, plasma-mediated nonlinearities. By deriving a Gross-Pitaevskii equation with a tunable photon-photon interaction kernel, we show that under coherent driving the cavity light field can spontaneously crystallize into a supersolid lattice via modulational instability. Crucially, this supersolid arises from a weak photon-electron coupling enabled by virtual electronic transitions, and it does not require hybrid polariton formation. Using doped semiconductor microcavities, we identify feasible conditions (electron densities ∼1010−1011 cm−2\sim 10^{10}- 10^{11}~\mathrm{cm}^{-2}∼1010−1011 cm−2 and optical intensities ∼102−104 W/cm2\sim 10^{2}-10^{4}~\mathrm{W/cm}^{2}∼102−104 W/cm2) for experimental realization. This work establishes plasmonic cavities as a platform for correlated photonic matter with emergent quantum order.
We propose an optical memory cell based on ultrafast wavelength switching in coupled-cavity microlasers, featuring bistability between modes separated by several nanometers. A numerical implementation is demonstrated by simulating a two-dimensional photonic crystal microlaser. Switching times of less than 10 ps, switching energy around 15-30 fJ, and on-off contrast of more than 40 dB are achieved. Theoretical guidelines for optimizing the performance of the memory cell in terms of switching time and energy are drawn.
We demonstrate extremely low-power all-optical bistability by utilizing silicon photonic crystal nanocavities, based on the plasma effect of carriers generated by two-photon absorption. Owing to the high quality factor and the small volume of the nanocavities, the photon density inside the cavity becomes extremely high, which leads to a large reduction in operation power. Optical bistable operation in a single nanocavity permits optical read-write memory operation, which opens the possibility of an integrated optical logic circuit on a single chip, based on photonic crystals. The demonstrated bistable threshold power is 0.4 mW with a set pulse energy of 74 fJ, at a switching speed of <100 ps.
The Kerr nonlinearity can be a key enabler for many digital photonic circuits as it allows access to bistable states needed for all-optical memories and switches. A common technique is to use the Kerr shift to control the resonance frequency of a resonator and use it as a bistable, optically-tunable filter. However, this approach works only in a narrow power and frequency range or requires the use of an auxiliary laser. An alternative approach is to use the asymmetric bistability between counterpropagating light states resulting from the interplay between self- and cross-phase modulation, which allows light to enter a ring resonator in just one direction. Logical high and low states can be represented and stored as the direction of circulation of light, and controlled by modulating the input power. Here we study the switching speed, operating laser frequency and power range, and contrast ratio of such a device. We reach a bitrate of 2 Mbps in our proof-of-principle device over an optical frequency range of 1 GHz and an operating power range covering more than one order of magnitude. We also calculate that integrated photonic circuits could exhibit bitrates of the order of Gbps, paving the way for the realization of robust and simple all-optical memories, switches, routers and logic gates that can operate at a single laser frequency with no additional electrical power.
We analyze the absorptive and hybrid absorptive–dispersive double-cavity optical bistability behavior in a four-level N-type atomic system driven by two optical fields circulating inside two independently unidirectional ring cavities and a trigger field outside the cavities. In this system, the two-photon absorption and cross Kerr nonlinearity play significant roles in the formation of bistability and can be controlled efficiently due to the quantum interference effect, and then the resulting nonlinear behavior exhibits different features from the two/three-level schemes. It is shown that the threshold values and hysteresis cycle width of the bistable curve can be manipulated via the adjustment of the system parameters. Meanwhile, we also obtain double-beam optical multistability. When adding positive and negative pulses to the cavity input, all-optical steady-state switching for the two cavity outputs can be achieved simultaneously. Therefore, the proposed scheme may have potential applications in all-optical communication and computing.
A phase transition describes the sudden change of state in a physical system, such as the transition between a fluid and a solid. Quantum gases provide the opportunity to establish a direct link between experiment and generic models which capture the underlying physics. A fundamental concept to describe the collective matter-light interaction is the Dicke model which has been predicted to show an intriguing quantum phase transition. Here we realize the Dicke quantum phase transition in an open system formed by a Bose-Einstein condensate coupled to an optical cavity, and observe the emergence of a self-organized supersolid phase. The phase transition is driven by infinitely long-ranged interactions between the condensed atoms. These are induced by two-photon processes involving the cavity mode and a pump field. We show that the phase transition is described by the Dicke Hamiltonian, including counter-rotating coupling terms, and that the supersolid phase is associated with a spontaneously broken spatial symmetry. The boundary of the phase transition is mapped out in quantitative agreement with the Dicke model. The work opens the field of quantum gases with long-ranged interactions, and provides access to novel quantum phases.