Quantum and nonlinear photonics

Nonlinear properties of photonic crystals are of considerable interest because of the strong local enhancement of the electromagnetic field that may take place in suitably designed photonic structures and cavities. The photonic band dispersion of photonic crystals can be engineered in order to fulfil phase-matching conditions for nonlinear processes like harmonic generation. We have been studying resonant second-harmonic generation (SHG) in semiconductor microcavities and one-dimensional photonic crystals. In dielectric Fabry-Pérot microcavities, the SH signal grows exponentially with the number of layers in the dielectric mirrors, due to the increase of quality factor at the pump and/or at the second harmonic. In the case of one-dimensional photonic crystals (or Bragg multilayers), the SHG process can be resonant at the pump and/or at the harmonic frequencies by exploiting band-edge resonances close to the photonic band gaps. Rather surprisingly, it was found that the generated SH under optimal conditions grows with the eight power of the thickness, and that this optimal condition takes place in a non-phase matched situation.

Quantum photonics is an emerging field of nanoscale nonlinear optics, with the aim of studying and exploiting nonlinear optical properties in the extreme quantum limit, ultimately down to the single-photon level. One line of research, with a strong synergy between theoretical and experimental activity, is dedicated to the investigation of quantum correlated states from strongly coupled light matter systems (quantum polaritonics). Here the strong nonlinearities together with the light dispersion engineering provided by photonic crystals can be employed to engineer the spontaneous or stimulated light emitting processes. As a first step in this direction, we have shown the first evidence of photonic crystal polaritons.

In a second line of research, mainly theoretical and speculative in character, we are interested in single-photon nonlinear optics in photonic nanostructures. Our interest is currently twofold: on one hand we are investigating the fundamental aspects of strongly correlated photonic systems, where the similarities of strongly coupled nonlinear cavities with strongly correlated electronic systems is a constant source of inspiration for the emergence of new physical phenomena; on the other, controlling single photons with single photons might provide prospective nanoscale devices, such as single-photon transistors or switches (see, e.g., a proposal for a quantum optical Josephson interferometer in a system of coupled cavities).

Participants:

L.C. Andreani, D. Bajoni, D. Gerace, M. Galli, D. Grassani, M. Liscidini, S. Azzini, S. Ferretti

Collaborations:

Mesoscopic Quantum Optics group, Dept. of Electrical Engineering, Princeton University (USA)

Quantum Photonics group, Institute of Quantum Electronics, ETH Zurich, Switzerland

Laboratoire de Photonique et de Nanostructures, CNRS, Marcoussis, France

Department of Physics, University of Toronto, Canada

Projects:

MIUR FIRB Futuro in Ricerca 2010-2013 "Nonlinear and quantum optics in nanoscale photonic structures"

Fondazione Alma Mater Ticinensis "Semiconductor devices for entangled photon pair generation"

CNISM Innesco project 2007 "Photonic Crystal Polaritons for Entangled Photon Generation"

Key publications: POLARITONICS

Analog Hawking radiation from an acoustic black hole in a flowing polariton superfluid,

D. Gerace and I. Carusotto,

Physical Review B 86, 144505 (2012). PDF

Polariton lasers. Hybrid light-matter lasers without inversion,

D. Bajoni,

Journal of Physics D: Appl. Phys. 45, 313001 (2012). PDF

Ultra-low threshold polariton lasing in photonic crystal cavities,

S. Azzini, D. Gerace, M. Galli, I. Sagnes, R. Braive, A. Lemaitre, J. Bloch, and D. Bajoni,

Applied Physics Letters 99, 111106 (2011). PDF

Guided Bloch surface wave polaritons,

M. Liscidini, D. Gerace, D. Sanvitto, and D. Bajoni,

Applied Physics Letters 98, 121118 (2011). PDF Erratum.

Exciton polaritons in two-dimensional photonic crystals,

D. Bajoni, D. Gerace, M. Galli, J. Bloch, R. Braive, I. Sagnes, A. Miard, A. Lemaitre, M. Patrini, and L.C. Andreani,

Phys. Rev. B 80, 201308(R) (2009). PDF

Quantum theory of exciton-photon coupling in photonic crystal slabs with embedded quantum wells,

D. Gerace and L.C. Andreani,

Phys. Rev. B 75, 235325 (2007). PDF

Key publications: SINGLE-PHOTON NON-LINEAR OPTICS

Optimal antibunching in passive photonic devices based on coupled nonlinear resonators,

S. Ferretti, V. Savona, and D. Gerace,

New Journal of Physics 15, 025012 (2013). PDF

Single-photon nonlinear optics with Kerr-type nanostructured materials,

S. Ferretti and D. Gerace,

Physical Review B 85, 033303 (2012). PDF

Few emitters in a cavity: from cooperative emission to individualization,

A. Auffeves, D. Gerace, S. Portolan, A. Drezet, and M. F. Santos

New Journal of Physics 13, 093020 (2011). PDF

Nonequilibrium delocalization-localization transition of photons in circuit quantum electrodynamics,

S. Schmidt, D. Gerace, A. A. Houck, G. Blatter, and H. E. Tureci

Phys. Rev. B 82, 100507(R) (2010). PDF

Photon correlations in a two-site nonlinear cavity system under coherent drive and dissipation,

S. Ferretti, L. C. Andreani, H. E. Tureci, and D. Gerace,

Phys. Rev. A 82, 013841 (2010). PDF

Signatures of the superfluid-insulator phase transition in laser-driven dissipative nonlinear cavity arrays,

A. Tomadin, V. Giovannetti, R. Fazio, D. Gerace, I. Carusotto, H.E. Tureci, and A. Imamoglu

Phys. Rev. A 81, 061801(R) (2010). PDF

Controlling the dynamics of a coupled atom-cavity system by pure dephasing,

A. Auffeves, D. Gerace, J.-M. Gerard, M. F. Santos, L. C. Andreani, and J.-P. Poizat,

Phys. Rev. B 81, 245419 (2010). PDF

Extracavity quantum vacuum radiation from a single qubit,

S. De Liberato, D. Gerace, I. Carusotto, and C. Ciuti,

Phys. Rev. A 80, 053810 (2009). PDF

Fermionized photons in an array of driven dissipative nonlinear cavities,

I. Carusotto, D. Gerace, H. Tureci, S. De Liberato, C. Ciuti, and A. Imamoglu,

Phys. Rev. Lett. 103, 033601 (2009). PDF

The quantum optical Josephson interferometer,

D. Gerace, H. Tureci, V. Giovannetti, R. Fazio, and A. Imamoglu,

Nature Physics 5, 281–284 (2009). PDF. Supplementary material.

Key publications: NON-LINEAR AND QUANTUM OPTICS

From classical four-wave mixing to parametric fluorescence in silicon microring resonators,

S. Azzini, D. Grassani, M. Galli, L. C. Andreani, M. Sorel, M. J. Strain, L. G. Helt, J. E. Sipe, M. Liscidini, and D. Bajoni,

Optics Letters 37, 3807 (2012). PDF

Ultra-low power generation of twin photons in a compact silicon ring resonator,

S. Azzini, D. Grassani, M. J. Strain, M. Sorel, L. G. Helt, J. E. Sipe, M. Liscidini, M. Galli, and D. Bajoni,

Optics Express 20, 23100 (2012). PDF

Asymptotic fields for a Hamiltonian treatment of nonlinear electromagnetic phenomena,

M. Liscidini, L. G. Helt, and J. E. Sipe,

Physical Review A 85, 013833 (2012). PDF

Spontaneous four-wave mixing in microring resonators,

L. G. Helt, Z. Yang, M. Liscidini, and J. E. Sipe

Optics Letters 35, 3006-3008 (2010). PDF

Maximum-exponent scaling behavior of optical second-harmonic generation in finite multilayer photonic crystals,

M. Liscidini, A. Locatelli, L.C. Andreani, and C. De Angelis,

Phys. Rev. Lett. 99, 053907 (2007). PDF

Second-harmonic generation in doubly-resonant microcavities with periodic dielectric mirrors,

M. Liscidini and L.C. Andreani,

Phys. Rev. E 73, 016613 (2006). PDF

Highly efficient second-harmonic generation in doubly-resonant planar microcavities,

M. Liscidini and L.C. Andreani,

Appl. Phys. Lett. 85, 1883 (2004). PDF