2006/02/28 by Reda Idrissi Kaitouni, R. Idrissi Kaitouni, Ounsi El Daïf +17 · 8 citations
Engineering · Physics and Astronomy · #Plasmonic and Surface Plasmon Research #Strong Light-Matter Interactions #Thermal Radiation and Cooling Technologies #cond-mat.mes-hall #cond-mat.mtrl-sci #cond-mat.other
paper · pdf · doi:10.1103/physrevb.74.155311
published as Phys. Rev. B 74, 155311 (2006)
arxiv created 2006/03/05 · openalex publication_date 2006/10/16 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/31
We demonstrate three-dimensional spatial confinement of exciton-polaritons in a semiconductor microcavity. Polaritons are confined within a micron-sized region of slightly larger cavity thickness, called mesa, through lateral trapping of their photon component. This results in a shallow potential well that allows the simultaneous existence of extended states above the barrier. Photoluminescence spectra were measured as a function of either the emission angle or the position on the sample. Striking signatures of confined states of lower and upper polaritons, together with the corresponding extended states at higher energy, were found. In particular, the confined states appear only within the mesa region, and are characterized by a discrete energy spectrum and a broad angular pattern. A theoretical model of polariton states, based on a realistic description of the confined photon modes, supports our observations.