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Proceedings of SPIE, the International Society for Optical Engineering/Proceedings of SPIE

Photonic media with whispering-gallery modes

Lute Maleki, Andrey B. Matsko, Dmitry Strekalov, Anatoliy A. Savchenkov

Published Apr 12, 2005• 2 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We theoretically show that achieving high Q-factors of small whispering gallery mode resonators, together with significant non-harmonism (non-equidistance) of its modes, allows for extensive analogy between properties of atoms and the resonator modes. The non-harmonism in very high-Q microresonators is caused by the material as well as geometrical dispersion. The established analogy leads to creating of a photonic media with properties similar to those of atomic media. For instance, effective two-level systems can be formed within the resonator. The levels of the systems, i.e. the resonator modes, can be coupled with microwave or optical fields. Strong confinement of the light in the resonator along with high Q-factors results in nonlinear processes at low light levels even with small nonlinearities typical of optically transparent materials.

DOI
10.1117/12.609083

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We theoretically show that achieving high Q-factors of small
whispering gallery mode resonators, together with significant
non-harmonism (non-equidistance) of its modes, allows for
extensive analogy between properties of atoms and the resonator
modes. The non-harmonism in very high-Q microresonators is caused
by the material as well as geometrical dispersion. The established
analogy leads to creating of a photonic media with properties
similar to those of atomic media. For instance, effective
two-level systems can be formed within the resonator. The
levels of the systems, i.e. the resonator modes, can be coupled
with microwave or optical fields. Strong confinement of the light
in the resonator along with high Q-factors results in nonlinear
processes at low light levels even with small nonlinearities
typical of optically transparent materials.
All optical devices based on nonlinear effects that use low-level power pumping acquire a great importance in optical communications systems and photonic processing. These optical devices can be implemented by means of different structures and materials. For instance, Fabry-Perot vertical microcavities, whispering gallery based microcavities or hybrid system of photonic crystal microcavities can improve their performance and so make possible a real implementation. In this research work we review the properties of optical media with three-level systems in which electromagnetically induced transparency has been induced. We analyse the effect of including such kind of material in an optical microcavity of the order of wavelenghts. Transmission properties like as the quality factor, the peak of transmission, the power of the coupling field in these microcavities with very small volume and very high non-linear Kerr coefficients will be analysed. Their application for developing new all-optical photonic devices for the next generation of all-optical networks, optical packets switching networks, and quantum information processing will be presented.
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.
High- and ultrahigh-Q whispering-gallery mode resonators have the capability to trap photons by total internal reflection for a duration ranging from nanoseconds to milliseconds. These exceptionally long photon lifetimes enhance the light–matter interactions at all scales, namely at the electronic, molecular, and lattice levels. As a consequence, nonlinear photon scattering can be triggered with very low threshold powers, down to a few microwatts. The possibility to efficiently harness photon–photon interactions with a system optimizing size, weight, power, and cost constraints has created a new, quickly thriving research area in photonics science and technology. This topic is inherently cross-disciplinary, as it stands at the intersection of nonlinear and quantum optics, crystallography, optoelectronics, and microwave photonics. From a fundamental perspective, high-Q whispering-gallery mode resonators have emerged as an ideal platform to investigate light–matter interactions in nonlinear bulk materials. From an applied viewpoint, technological applications include time-metrology, aerospace engineering, coherent optical fiber communications, or nonclassical light generation, among others. The aim of this paper is to provide an overview of the most recent advances in this area, which is increasingly gaining importance in contemporary photonics.
The external fields of optical whispering gallery modes may be used to confine atoms in stable orbits around a dielectric microsphere. As an example, a toroidal dipole-force trap (atom gallery) for three-level atoms is investigated, and the possibility of achieving an atomic (matter-wave) resonator is discussed. The extremely small electromagnetic mode volumes and high Q's of the whispering gallery modes should permit a circulating photon to be repeatedly absorbed and reemitted by a trapped whispering atom.