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Superluminal ring laser for hypersensitive sensing.

H N Yum¹, M Salit, J Yablon

¹Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA. h-yum@northwestern.edu

|August 20, 2010

Summary

Superluminal group velocity for light occurs in lasers with specific gain profiles. A dip in gain enhances this effect, creating a highly sensitive sensor.

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Area of Science:

Quantum optics
Laser physics
Photonics

Background:

Superluminal group velocity is achievable in media with negative dispersion.
Laser gain typically exhibits constant behavior, balancing losses.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the effective dispersion experienced by lasing frequencies within a laser cavity.
To explore the impact of unsaturated gain spectral profiles on group velocity.
To demonstrate a novel sensing application based on enhanced frequency displacement sensitivity.

Main Methods:

Theoretical analysis of light propagation within a laser medium.
Modeling the influence of gain spectral profiles on effective dispersion.
Investigating the relationship between gain profile features and group velocity.

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Main Results:

The effective dispersion for the lasing frequency is sensitive to the unsaturated gain's spectral profile.
A dip in the gain profile induces a superluminal group velocity for the lasing mode.
Displacement sensitivity of the lasing frequency is amplified by approximately five orders of magnitude.

Conclusions:

Gain spectral profiles significantly influence light's group velocity in lasers.
A gain dip enables superluminal group velocity, offering a unique optical phenomenon.
The enhanced frequency sensitivity presents a versatile platform for hypersensitive sensing applications.