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Chaos-assisted directional light emission from microcavity lasers
Susumu Shinohara1, Takahisa Harayama, Takehiro Fukushima
1Max-Planck-Institut für Physik Komplexer Systeme, Nöthnitzer Strasse 38, D-01187 Dresden, Germany.
Physical Review Letters
|May 21, 2010
Summary
Dynamical tunneling in ray-chaotic microcavities leads to directional emission. This study provides experimental evidence of tunneling from periodic to chaotic ray orbits, explaining unexpected emission patterns.
Area of Science:
- Physics
- Optics
- Quantum Chaos
Background:
- Microcavities exhibit complex ray dynamics.
- Dynamical tunneling is a quantum phenomenon.
- Understanding emission from chaotic systems is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- Investigate dynamical tunneling's effect on microcavity emission.
- Explain directional emission from ray-chaotic systems.
- Provide experimental validation for theoretical predictions.
Main Methods:
- Designed a deformed disk microcavity.
- Focused on high quality factor modes.
- Utilized selective mode excitation.
Main Results:
- Observed dominant emission from tunneling.
- Directional emission linked to chaotic ray dynamics.
- Experimental results matched theoretical predictions.
Conclusions:
- Dynamical tunneling significantly influences microcavity emission.
- Unstable manifolds of chaotic dynamics explain emission directionality.
- Decisive experimental evidence of dynamical tunneling in ray-chaotic microcavities was obtained.
