2011/03/15 by Hashem Zoubi, Helmut Ritsch · 25 citations
Chemistry · Physics and Astronomy · #Atomic physics #Chemistry #Cold Atom Physics and Bose-Einstein Condensates #Condensed matter physics #Excitation #Excited state #Laser #Metastability #Optical lattice #Optics #Physics #Planar #Plane wave #Polarization (electrochemistry) #Quantum mechanics #Quantum optics and atomic interactions #Quasiparticle #Radiative transfer #Strong Light-Matter Interactions #Superradiance #Wavelength #quant-ph
paper · pdf · doi:10.1103/physreva.83.063831
published in Physical Review A 83(6) (American Physical Society) · 5 pages, 11 figures
arxiv created 2011/03/15 · openalex publication_date 2011/06/23 · arxiv updated 2011/06/27 · openalex created_date 2016/08/23 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
Collective electronic excitations in planar optical lattices exhibit strong modifications of the radiative damping rate and directional emission pattern as compared to a single excited atom. Collective excitations for long wave numbers and polarizations orthogonal to the lattice plane exhibit superradiance with a very short lifetime and a tightly confined emission direction. For shorter wavelength and in-plane polarization, they can possess a long lifetime, which, beyond a critical wave number, tends to infinity. Those excitations thus become metastable and decoupled from the free radiation field. They can store a single energy quantum for a long time and transfer the excitation over long distances. In general the spatial, polarization, and frequency dependence of the emission pattern can provide us with optical and electronic properties of optical lattices.