Quantum descrition of superradiant emission from single emitters coupled with plasmonic nanoparticles in asymmetric configurationsrations

Victor N. Zadkov, Julia Vladimirova

H. Varguet, S. Guérin, Hans Rudolf Jauslin +1 more

Plasmonic superradiance originates from the plasmon mediated strong correlation that builds up between dipolar emitters coupled to a metal nanoparticle. This leads to a fast burst of emission so that plasmonic superradiance constitutes ultrafast and extremely bright optical nanosources of strong interest for integrated quantum nano-optics platforms. We elucidate the superradiance effect by establishing the dynamics of the system, including all features such as the orientation of the dipoles, their distance to the particle, and the number of active plasmon modes. We determine an optimal configuration for Purcell enhanced superradiance. We also show superradiance blockade at small distances.

Victor N. Zadkov, Yu. V. Vladimirova

Vitaliy N. Pustovit, Tigran V. Shahbazyan

We identify a new mechanism for cooperative emission of light by an ensemble of N dipoles near a metal nanostructure supporting a surface plasmon. The cross talk between emitters due to the virtual plasmon exchange leads to the formation of three plasmonic superradiant modes whose radiative decay rates scale with N, while the total radiated energy is thrice that of a single emitter. Our numerical simulations indicate that the plasmonic Dicke effect survives nonradiative losses in the metal.

V.A.G. Rivera, O. B. Silva, Yannick Ledemi +2 more

Vitaliy N. Pustovit, Tigran V. Shahbazyan

We develop a theory of cooperative emission of light by an ensemble of emitters, such as fluorescing molecules or semiconductor quantum dots, located near a metal nanostructure supporting surface plasmon. The primary mechanism of cooperative emission in such systems is resonant energy transfer between emitters and plasmons rather than the Dicke radiative coupling between emitters. We identify two types of plasmonic coupling between the emitters, (i) plasmon-enhanced radiative coupling and (ii) plasmon-assisted nonradiative energy transfer, the competition between them governing the structure of system eigenstates. Specifically, when emitters are removed by more than several nanometers from the metal surface, the emission is dominated by three superradiant states with the same quantum yield as a single emitter, resulting in a drastic reduction of ensemble radiated energy, while at smaller distances cooperative behavior is destroyed by nonradiative transitions. The crossover between two regimes can be observed in distance dependence of ensemble quantum efficiency. Our numerical calculations incorporating direct and plasmon-assisted interactions between the emitters indicate that they do not destroy the plasmonic Dicke effect.