Rare-Earth-Mediated Optomechanical System in the Reversed Dissipation Regime

Area of Science:

• Quantum Optics
• Optomechanics
• Materials Science

Background:

• Optomechanical systems couple mechanical motion to optical fields.
• Rare-earth ions, like erbium, offer long-lived optical transitions.
• Achieving strong coupling in optomechanics is crucial for quantum technologies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate strain-mediated interaction between phonons and telecom photons.
• To explore the 'reversed dissipation regime' using excited states of erbium ions.
• To investigate the potential for single-photon strong coupling and hybrid systems.

Main Methods:

• Utilized excited states of erbium ions embedded in a mechanical resonator.
• Experimentally measured the optomechanical coupling rate (g₀).
• Performed numerical analyses to explore interaction dynamics and coupling regimes.

Main Results:

• Demonstrated strain-mediated interaction between phonons and telecom photons.
• Achieved a 'reversed dissipation regime' where optical dissipation is lower than mechanical.
• Experimentally confirmed an optomechanical coupling rate g₀ = 2π × 21.7 Hz.
• Numerically showed potential for g₀ to exceed dissipation rates, enabling single-photon strong coupling.

Conclusions:

• Strain-mediated interaction in erbium-doped mechanical resonators enables a reversed dissipation regime.
• This system shows potential for achieving single-photon strong coupling.
• The interaction's involvement of spin degrees of freedom opens avenues for coherent opto-electro-mechanical hybrid systems.