We present theoretical results of an all-optical switch in a micro-disk resonator cavity using the Zeno effect and electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT).We predict a switching contrast of over 20 dB with only 100 nW of control-beam power.
We present theoretical results of a low-loss all-optical switch based on electromagnetically induced transparency and the quantum Zeno effect in a microdisk resonator. We show that a control beam can modify the atomic absorption of the evanescent field which suppresses the cavity field buildup and alters the path of a weak signal beam. We predict more than 35 dB of switching contrast with less than 0.1 dB loss using just 2 μW of control-beam power for signal beams with less than single photon intensities inside the cavity.
Low-contrast all-optical Zeno switching has been demonstrated in a Si3N4 microdisk resonator coupled to warm atomic vapor. The device is based on the suppression of the resonant microcavity field buildup due to nondegenerate two-photon absorption. This experiment used one beam in a resonator and one in free space due to limitations related to device physics. These results suggest that a similar scheme with both beams resonant in the cavity would correspond to input power levels below 150 nW.