The generation of a quantum fluid of dressed photons at room temperature is experimentally demonstrated in an InGaN microcavity which is divided into two- and one-dimensional sections, resulting in single- and switchable multilevel coherent light emission. Ultra-low-threshold operation is attributed to the slight but robust excitonic fraction of the photonic condensate representing a bosonic laser working below the Mott transition (polariton laser). In contrast to equilibrium Bose-Einstein condensates, the nonequilibrium driven-dissipative nature enables the population of higher orbitals if any confinement potential is present to induce enhanced quantum correlations. Trapping inside microwire spacers leads to a polariton harmonic oscillator resulting in discrete states in an equidistant ladder of photonic orbitals. Level occupation and selection of a specific wave function is managed via optical control, mimicking a quantum emitter on a macroscopic level. It shows that exotic states of matter can be realized in rather simple structures at room temperature directly visible to the human eye. It represents also an excellent opportunity to study basic many-body dynamics in one-dimensional bosonic matter by simultaneously settling an optimized fabrication technique for devices enabling practical Boolean quantum logic gates for optical computing.
The generation of a quantum fluid of dressed photons at room temperature is experimentally demonstrated in an InGaN microcavity which is divided into two- and one-dimensional sections, resulting in single- and switchable multilevel coherent light emission. Ultra-low-threshold operation is attributed to the slight but robust excitonic fraction of the photonic condensate representing a bosonic laser working below the Mott transition (polariton laser). In contrast to equilibrium Bose-Einstein condensates, the nonequilibrium driven-dissipative nature enables the population of higher orbitals if any confinement potential is present to induce enhanced quantum correlations. Trapping inside microwire spacers leads to a polariton harmonic oscillator resulting in discrete states in an equidistant ladder of photonic orbitals. Level occupation and selection of a specific wave function is managed via optical control, mimicking a quantum emitter on a macroscopic level. It shows that exotic states of matter can be realized in rather simple structures at room temperature directly visible to the human eye. It represents also an excellent opportunity to study basic many-body dynamics in one-dimensional bosonic matter by simultaneously settling an optimized fabrication technique for devices enabling practical Boolean quantum logic gates for optical computing.
Abstract Many bosons can occupy a single quantum state without a limit. It is described by the quantum-mechanical Bose–Einstein statistic, which allows Bose–Einstein condensation at low temperatures and high particle densities. Photons, historically the first considered bosonic gas, were late to show this phenomenon, observed in rhodamine-filled microcavities and doped fibre cavities. These findings have raised the question of whether condensation is also common in other laser systems with potential technological applications. Here we show the Bose–Einstein condensation of photons in a broad-area vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser with a slight cavity-gain spectral detuning. We observed a Bose–Einstein condensate in the fundamental transversal optical mode at a critical phase-space density. The experimental results follow the equation of state for a two-dimensional gas of bosons in thermal equilibrium, although the extracted spectral temperatures were lower than the device’s. This is interpreted as originating from the driven-dissipative nature of the photon gas. In contrast, non-equilibrium lasing action is observed in the higher-order modes in more negatively detuned device. Our work opens the way for the potential exploration of superfluid physics of interacting photons mediated by semiconductor optical nonlinearities. It also shows great promise for enabling single-mode high-power emission from a large-aperture device.
The recent progress in nanotechnology [1,2] and single-molecule spectroscopy [3-5] paves the way for cost-effective organic quantum optical technologies emergent with a promise to real-life devices operating at ambient conditions. In this letter, we harness π-conjugated segments of an organic ladder-type polymer strongly coupled to a microcavity forming correlated collective dressed states of light, so-called of exciton-polariton condensates. We explore an efficient way for all-optical ultra-fast control over the macroscopic condensate wavefunction via a single photon. Obeying Bose statistics, exciton-polaritons exhibit an extreme nonlinearity undergoing bosonic stimulation [6] which we have managed to trigger at the single-photon level. Relying on the nature of organic matter to sustain stable excitons dressed with high energy molecular vibrations we have developed a principle that allows for single-photon nonlinearity operation at ambient conditions opening the door for practical implementations like sub-picosecond switching, amplification and all-optical logic at the fundamental limit of single light quanta.
Abstract When particles with integer spin accumulate at low temperature and high density, they undergo Bose–Einstein condensation (BEC). Atoms, magnons, solid-state excitons, surface plasmon polaritons and excitons coupled to light exhibit BEC, which results in high coherence due to massive occupation of the respective system’s ground state. Surprisingly, photons were shown to exhibit BEC recently in organic-dye-filled optical microcavities, which—owing to the photon’s low mass—occurs at room temperature. Here we demonstrate that photons within an inorganic semiconductor microcavity also thermalize and undergo BEC. Although semiconductor lasers are understood to operate out of thermal equilibrium, we identify a region of good thermalization in our system where we can clearly distinguish laser action from BEC. Semiconductor microcavities are a robust system for exploring the physics and applications of quantum statistical photon condensates. In practical terms, photon BECs offer their critical behaviour at lower thresholds than lasers. Our study shows two further advantages: the lack of dark electronic states in inorganic semiconductors allows these BECs to be sustained continuously; and quantum wells offer stronger photon–photon scattering. We measure an unoptimized interaction parameter ( g~ g ̃ ≳ 10–3), which is large enough to access the rich physics of interactions within BECs, such as superfluid light.
For many-body quantum systems, dimensionality is known to exert a profound influence on the physical behaviour, allowing for the shaping of distinct phases of matter. In general, for lower dimensions, enhanced fluctuations serve to suppress long range order. For bosonic gases, for example, Bose-Einstein condensation in one dimension requires confinement that is stronger than linear in order to occur, in contrast to two-dimensional systems where harmonic confinement can suffice. In this thesis, the dimensional crossover between one and two dimensions in a harmonically trapped photon gas has been experimentally investigated. The photons were confined within a dye filled optical microcavity, where polymer nanostructures produced by direct laser writing defined the trapping potential. By systematically adjusting the aspect ratio of the harmonic trap, the confinement was varied from an isotropic two dimensional regime to a highly anisotropic one dimensional regime. The caloric properties of the photon gas were characterised across this transition, revealing that the sharp phase transition observed in two dimensions evolves into a smooth crossover in one dimension. This work enhances understanding of thermodynamic behaviour in photon Bose gases under confinement and demonstrates that here dimensionality can be used to tailor phase transition phenomena. Furthermore, polymer cavities fabricated via direct laser writing afforded precise control over the confinement geometry, enabling exploration of variable potential landscapes. Proof of concept studies of advanced geometries, previously inaccessible, are presented, opening new directions for research in driven dissipative Bose gases and photonic quantum simulation platforms.
Many bosons can occupy a single quantum state without a limit. This state is described by quantum-mechanical Bose-Einstein statistics, which allows the formation of a Bose-Einstein condensate at low temperatures and high particle densities. Photons, historically the first considered bosonic gas, were late to show this phenomenon, which was observed in rhodamine-filled microlaser cavities and doped fiber cavities. These more recent findings have raised the natural question as to whether condensation is common in laser systems, with potential technological applications. Here, we show the Bose-Einstein condensation of photons in a broad-area vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser with positive cavity mode-gain peak energy detuning. We observed a Bose-Einstein condensate in the fundamental transversal optical mode at the critical phase-space density. The experimental results follow the equation of state for a two-dimensional gas of bosons in thermal equilibrium, although the extracted spectral temperatures were lower than those of the device. This is interpreted as originating from the driven-dissipative nature of the device and the stimulated cooling effect. In contrast, non-equilibrium lasing action is observed in the higher-order modes in a negatively detuned device. Our work opens the way for the potential exploration of superfluid physics of interacting photons mediated by semiconductor optical non-linearities. It also shows great promise for enabling single-mode high-power emission from a large aperture device.
Through trapping light in a dye-filled optical microcavity, one can engineer a gapped band structure for photons, causing them to behave as massive bosons moving in two dimensions. Repeated absorption and emission by the dye can lead to a thermal distribution and Bose- Einstein condensation. In this thesis, I study photonic condensates beyond the equilibrium thermodynamic Bose-Einstein condensation limit in three ways. First, I describe a method for fine control of the trapping potential for light allowing for future study of thermalised light in box potentials and 1D potentials as well as others, expected to show quasi-condensation and possibly superfluid behaviour, rather than ideal Bose-Einstein condensation. Second, I show how this fabrication technique has been used to define tight trapping potentials with only a few thermally accessible energy levels. In these systems, dominance of the ground- state population and build-up of coherence occur at photon numbers less than ten, raising interesting questions about how to define condensation. I discuss these questions through the relevant chapter. Third, pulsed-pump experiments show interesting temporal dynamics including jitter in the formation time of a condensate after a pump pulse due to the stochastic nature of the emission processes involved. I show how the non-stationary two-time correlation function g(2)(t1, t2) is a powerful tool for characterising these temporal dynamics and I interpret the results in a more general framework of the evolution of a probability density function through an effective free energy landscape, driven by drift terms and stochastic forces.