Formation and all-optical control of optical patterns in semiconductor microcavities

R. Binder; C. Y. Tsang; Y. C. Tse; M. H. Luk; N. H. Kwong; Chris K. P. Chan; P. T. Leung; P. Lewandowski; Stefan Schumacher; O. Lafont; E. Baudin; J. Tignon

doi:10.1117/12.2224198

13 May 2016 Formation and all-optical control of optical patterns in semiconductor microcavities

R. Binder, C. Y. Tsang, Y. C. Tse, M. H. Luk, N. H. Kwong, Chris K. P. Chan, P. T. Leung, P. Lewandowski, Stefan Schumacher, O. Lafont, E. Baudin, J. Tignon

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 9835, Ultrafast Bandgap Photonics; 98351A (2016) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2224198
Event: SPIE Defense + Security, 2016, Baltimore, MD, United States

Abstract

Semiconductor microcavities offer a unique way to combine transient all-optical manipulation of GaAs quantum wells with the benefits of structural advantages of microcavities. In these systems, exciton-polaritons have dispersion relations with very small effective masses. This has enabled prominent effects, for example polaritonic Bose condensation, but it can also be exploited for the design of all-optical communication devices. The latter involves non-equilibrium phase transitions in the spatial arrangement of exciton-polaritons. We consider the case of optical pumping with normal incidence, yielding a spatially homogeneous distribution of exciton-polaritons in optical cavities containing the quantum wells. Exciton-exciton interactions can trigger instabilities if certain threshold behavior requirements are met. Such instabilities can lead, for example, to the spontaneous formation of hexagonal polariton lattices (corresponding to six-spot patterns in the far field), or to rolls (corresponding to two-spot far field patterns). The competition among these patterns can be controlled to a certain degree by applying control beams. In this paper, we summarize the theory of pattern formation and election in microcavities and illustrate the switching between patterns via simulation results.

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R. Binder, C. Y. Tsang, Y. C. Tse, M. H. Luk, N. H. Kwong, Chris K. P. Chan, P. T. Leung, P. Lewandowski, Stefan Schumacher, O. Lafont, E. Baudin, and J. Tignon "Formation and all-optical control of optical patterns in semiconductor microcavities", Proc. SPIE 9835, Ultrafast Bandgap Photonics, 98351A (13 May 2016); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2224198

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