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Quantum Electronics and Laser Science Conference

Trapping photons in microspheres for cavity QED experiments

S. Haroche

Published Jun 7, 1996• 0 citations
OpenAlex

Abstract

Summary form only given, as follows: The high Q whispering gallery modes of silica microspheres are promising for quantum optics and nonlinear optics experiments involving atoms and photons stored in very small volumes. We have developed the technology of these resonators, learning how to couple light in and out through optical fibers, how to obtain and measure record Q factors, and how to probe, by near-field optical microscopy, the electric field distribution immediately outside the sphere. Whispering gallery mode lasers have also been obtained with microspheres made of silica doped with neodymium ions. We describe these experiments and discuss projects involving the coupling of whispering gallery modes to single atoms or ions to perform cavity QED experiments in the optical domain.

Related papers

Coupling single atoms or molecules with a microsphere: a progress report

V. Lefèvre-Seguin

Silica microspheres have been demonstrated to provide a permanent resonator which combines small mode volumes with the highest observed quality factors (Q>2.10/sup 9/) corresponding to photon storage times of the order of one microsecond. These properties have allowed us to make a very low-threshold laser with Nd-doped silica microspheres (200 nW absorbed pump power, i.e. 10/sup 6/ excited ions/mode). These microlasers are now operated at 2 K to benefit from a smaller homogeneous linewidth. We then expect to reach the "thresholdless" regime with only a few excited ions. These experiments can also be considered as a first step toward Cavity QED experiments in the strong coupling regime with single atoms or molecules coupled to a whispering gallery mode.

IEEE Lasers and Electro-Optics Society Annual Meeting (LEOS)•Nov 23, 2002•1 citation

Cavity-enhanced effects with silica microspheres immersed in superfluid helium

Valérie Lefèvre-Seguin, François Treussart, Vladimir S. Ilchenko +4 more

Silica microspheres behave as efficient optical microresonators when small-volume whispering-gallery modes (WGMs) are used. We have realized a cryogenic set-up to work with microspheres immersed in a superfluid helium bath. Quality factors up to 109 have been obtained at 2 K. In this environment, we have been able to observe a dispersive bistable behavior of the WGM resonances, due to the weak intrinsic Kerr optical nonlinearity of silica, with a threshold power of 10 (mu) W only. This result opens the way to the realization of thresholdless microlaser, based on a rare-earth doped silica microsphere and to other Cavity-QED projects with microspheres at low temperatures.

Proceedings of SPIE, the International Society for Optical Engineering/Proceedings of SPIE•Feb 25, 1999•0 citations

Cavity QED with high- Q whispering gallery modes

David W. Vernooy, Akira Furusawa, N. Ph. Georgiades +2 more

We report measurements of cavity-QED effects for the radiative coupling of atoms in a dilute vapor to the external evanescent field of a whispering-gallery mode (WGM) in a fused silica microsphere. The high $Q$ $(5\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{7})$, small mode volume (10${}^{\ensuremath{-}8}$ cm${}^{3})$, and unusual symmetry of the microcavity evanescent field enable velocity-selective interactions between fields with photon number of order unity in the WGM and ${N}_{T}\ensuremath{\sim}1$ atoms in the surrounding vapor.

Physical Review A•Apr 1, 1998•285 citations

Frequency tuning of the whispering-gallery modes of silica microspheres for cavity quantum electrodynamics and spectroscopy

Wolf von Klitzing, Romain Long, Vladimir S. Ilchenko +2 more

We have tuned the whispering-gallery modes of a fused-silica microresonator over nearly 1 nm at 800 nm, i.e., over half a free spectral range, or 10(6) linewidths of the resonator. This result has been achieved by use of a new method based on the stretching of a two-stem microsphere. We describe devices that will permit new cavity QED experiments with this high- Q optical resonator when it is desirable to optimize its coupling to emitters with given transition frequencies. The demonstrated tuning capability is compatible with both UHV and low-temperature operation, which should be useful for future experiments with laser-cooled atoms or single quantum dots.

arXiv:quant-ph/0008010•Optics Letters•Feb 1, 2001•108 citations

Tunable whispering gallery modes for spectroscopy and CQED experiments

Wolf von Klitzing, Romain Long, Vladimir S. Ilchenko +2 more

We have tuned the whispering gallery modes of a fused silica micro-resonator over nearly 1 nm at 800 nm, i.e. over half of a free spectral range or the equivalent of 10 6 linewidths of the resonator. This has been achieved by a new method based on the stretching of a two-stem microsphere. The devices described below will permit new cavity-QED experiments with this ultra high finesse optical resonator when it is desirable to optimize its coupling to emitters with given transition frequencies. The tuning capability demonstrated is compatible with both UHV and low temperature operation, which should be useful for future experiments with laser cooled atoms or single quantum dots. A general overview of the current state of the art in microspheres is given as well as a more general introduction.

arXiv:quant-ph/0011102•New Journal of Physics•Aug 3, 2001•112 citations

Cavity QED with Whispering-Gallery Mode Microresonators

Takao Aoki

We review recent progress in the application of whispering-gallery mode microresonators, such as microspheres, microdisks, and microtoroids, in cavity Quantum Electrodynamics (QED). Particular emphasis is made on the studies on the interaction of laser-cooled single atoms with evanescent fi eld of monolithic microtoroidal resonators effi ciently coupled to tapered optical fi bers.

The Review of Laser Engineering•Jan 1, 2013•0 citations
Summary form only given, as follows: The high Q whispering gallery modes of silica microspheres are promising for quantum optics and nonlinear optics experiments involving atoms and photons stored in very small volumes. We have developed the technology of these resonators, learning how to couple light in and out through optical fibers, how to obtain and measure record Q factors, and how to probe, by near-field optical microscopy, the electric field distribution immediately outside the sphere. Whispering gallery mode lasers have also been obtained with microspheres made of silica doped with neodymium ions. We describe these experiments and discuss projects involving the coupling of whispering gallery modes to single atoms or ions to perform cavity QED experiments in the optical domain.
Silica microspheres have been demonstrated to provide a permanent resonator which combines small mode volumes with the highest observed quality factors (Q>2.10/sup 9/) corresponding to photon storage times of the order of one microsecond. These properties have allowed us to make a very low-threshold laser with Nd-doped silica microspheres (200 nW absorbed pump power, i.e. 10/sup 6/ excited ions/mode). These microlasers are now operated at 2 K to benefit from a smaller homogeneous linewidth. We then expect to reach the "thresholdless" regime with only a few excited ions. These experiments can also be considered as a first step toward Cavity QED experiments in the strong coupling regime with single atoms or molecules coupled to a whispering gallery mode.
Silica microspheres behave as efficient optical microresonators when small-volume whispering-gallery modes (WGMs) are used. We have realized a cryogenic set-up to work with microspheres immersed in a superfluid helium bath. Quality factors up to 109 have been obtained at 2 K. In this environment, we have been able to observe a dispersive bistable behavior of the WGM resonances, due to the weak intrinsic Kerr optical nonlinearity of silica, with a threshold power of 10 (mu) W only. This result opens the way to the realization of thresholdless microlaser, based on a rare-earth doped silica microsphere and to other Cavity-QED projects with microspheres at low temperatures.
We report measurements of cavity-QED effects for the radiative coupling of atoms in a dilute vapor to the external evanescent field of a whispering-gallery mode (WGM) in a fused silica microsphere. The high QQQ $(5\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{7})$, small mode volume (10${}^{\ensuremath{-}8}$ cm3){}^{3})3), and unusual symmetry of the microcavity evanescent field enable velocity-selective interactions between fields with photon number of order unity in the WGM and ${N}_{T}\ensuremath{\sim}1$ atoms in the surrounding vapor.
We have tuned the whispering-gallery modes of a fused-silica microresonator over nearly 1 nm at 800 nm, i.e., over half a free spectral range, or 10(6) linewidths of the resonator. This result has been achieved by use of a new method based on the stretching of a two-stem microsphere. We describe devices that will permit new cavity QED experiments with this high- Q optical resonator when it is desirable to optimize its coupling to emitters with given transition frequencies. The demonstrated tuning capability is compatible with both UHV and low-temperature operation, which should be useful for future experiments with laser-cooled atoms or single quantum dots.
We have tuned the whispering gallery modes of a fused silica micro-resonator over nearly 1 nm at 800 nm, i.e. over half of a free spectral range or the equivalent of 10 6 linewidths of the resonator. This has been achieved by a new method based on the stretching of a two-stem microsphere. The devices described below will permit new cavity-QED experiments with this ultra high finesse optical resonator when it is desirable to optimize its coupling to emitters with given transition frequencies. The tuning capability demonstrated is compatible with both UHV and low temperature operation, which should be useful for future experiments with laser cooled atoms or single quantum dots. A general overview of the current state of the art in microspheres is given as well as a more general introduction.