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Electrically reconfigurable extended lasing state in an organic liquid-crystal microcavity
Dmitriy Dovzhenko1, Luciano Siliano Ricco2,3, Krzysztof Sawicki4,5
1School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom. dovzhenkods@gmail.com.
Nature Communications
|April 16, 2026
Summary
Researchers developed a new organic liquid crystal microcavity for room-temperature nanophotonics. This platform enables electrically controlled interactions between lasing states, offering tunable control over coupled coherent emitters.
Area of Science:
- Nanophotonics and Optics
- Materials Science
- Condensed Matter Physics
Background:
- Modern nanophotonics requires small-footprint, low-power, and reprogrammable arrays of coupled coherent emitters.
- Existing solutions, primarily inorganic semiconductor microcavities, often require cryogenic temperatures for controlled on-chip interaction in the strong light-matter coupling regime.
Purpose of the Study:
- To demonstrate electrically controlled in-plane interaction between optically reconfigurable, spatially separated lasing states at room temperature.
- To introduce and explore an organic liquid crystal-filled microcavity as a novel material platform for nanophotonic applications.
Main Methods:
- Utilized an organic liquid crystal-filled microcavity to create a spatially extended coherent lasing state (supermode) via blueshift-induced near-field transverse coupling.
- Implemented on-chip phase-locking for microscale control of supermode near- and far-field properties.
- Achieved electrical control over interaction strength and mutual coherence between lasing states, extending beyond nearest neighbors.
Main Results:
- Demonstrated room-temperature operation in the weak light-matter coupling regime, overcoming cryogenic limitations.
- Achieved wide-range microscale control of supermode properties and phase-locking functionality.
- Realized electrical tuning of inter-emitter coupling and coherence, and a spin-selective directional coupling regime using a photonic analogue of spin-orbit interaction.
Conclusions:
- The organic liquid crystal microcavity platform enables novel control over coupled coherent emitters at room temperature.
- This approach offers a new pathway for developing advanced, reconfigurable nanophotonic devices with electrical tunability and spin-selective properties.
