Pump dynamical effects in superfluorescent quantum initiation and pulse evolution

F. P. Mattar, C. M. Bowden

F. P. Mattar, C. M. Bowden, Chi C. Sung

F. P. Mattar, C. M. Bowden, Yves Claude +1 more

F. P. Mattar, C. M. Bowden

A model is presented for the dynamical evolution of superfluorescence from an optically pumped three-level system. The full propagation, transverse, and diffraction effects are taken into account. With the use of a previously developed algorithm, a computational simulation was constructed from this model and results are presented and discussed. In particular, it is shown that the injected coherent pump-pulse initial characteristics, such as on-axis area, temporal and radial width and shape, can have significant deterministic effects on the superfluorescent pulse delay time, peak intensity, temporal width, and shape. Thus, by specifying certain initial properties of the injected pump pulse, the superfluorescent pulse can be shaped and altered. The results predict the conditions under which an injected light pulse of a given frequency can be used to generate, shape, and control a second light pulse of a different frequency via a nonlinear medium, thus demonstrating a new aspect of the phenomenon of light control by light.

C. T. Lee

Recognizing that the complete initial inversion required in superfluorescence (SF) can only be achieved in a finite time, we use two different master equations for two different stages of SF: one describing the initiation of SF during pumping and another one governing the free evolution of SF after pumping. The pumping process is treated as a Poisson process with varying rate to reflect a pump pulse of arbitrary shape. The exact solution to the first master equation is obtained and used as the initial condition for the second master equation. The statistical properties of the tipping angle and the delay time are then calculated explicity. It is shown that the effects of pumping process on these two quantities can be reduced to a parameter called effective head-start time (EHT). Two different expressions for this EHT have been derived: one with saturation effects and another one without.

F. P. Mattar, C. M. Bowden

Calculational results and analysis are presented and discussed for the effects of coherent pump dynamics, propagation, transverse and diffraction effects on superfluorescent (SF) emission from an optically-pumped three-level system. The full, co-propagational aspects of the injected pump pulse together with the SF which evolves are explicitly treated in the calculation. It is shown that the injection pulse initial characteris-tics can have a strong effect on the SF emission.