Directional laser emission from a wavelength-scale chaotic microcavity

Chiral photon blockade in the spinning Kerr resonator

We propose how to achieve chiral photon blockade by spinning a nonlinear optical resonator. We show that by driving such a device at a fixed direction, completely different quantum effects can emerge for the counter-propagating optical modes, due to the spinning-induced breaking of time-reversal symmetry, which otherwise is unattainable for the same device in the static regime. Also, we find that in comparison with the static case, robust non-classical correlations against random backscattering losses can be achieved for such a quantum chiral system. Our work, extending previous works on the spontaneous breaking of optical chiral symmetry from the classical to purely quantum regimes, can stimulate more efforts towards making and utilizing various chiral quantum effects, including applications for chiral quantum networks or noise-tolerant quantum sensors.

Spatiotemporal lasing dynamics in a Limaçon-shaped microcavity

Limaçon-shaped microdisk lasers are promising on-chip light sources with low lasing threshold and unidirectional output. We conduct an experimental study on the lasing dynamics of Limaçon-shaped semiconductor microcavities. The edge emission exhibits intensity fluctuations over a wide range of spatial and temporal scales. They result from multiple dynamic processes with different origins and occur on different spatiotemporal scales. The dominant process is an alternate oscillation between two output beams with a period as short as a few nanoseconds.

Decomposed Entropy and Estimation of Output Power in Deformed Microcavity Lasers

Park et al. showed that the Shannon entropy of the probability distribution of a single random variable for far-field profiles (FFPs) in deformed microcavity lasers can efficiently measure the directionality of deformed microcavity lasers. In this study, we instead consider two random variables of FFPs with joint probability distributions and introduce the decomposed (Shannon) entropy for the peak intensities of directional emissions. This provides a new foundation such that the decomposed entropy can estimate the degree of the output power at given FFPs without any further information.

Manipulating cavity photon dynamics by topologically curved space

Asymmetric microcavities supporting Whispering-gallery modes (WGMs) are of great significance for on-chip optical information processing. We establish asymmetric microcavities on topologically curved surfaces, where the geodesic light trajectories completely reconstruct the cavity mode features. The curvature-mediated photon-lifetime engineering enables the enhancement of the quality factors of periodic island modes by up to 200 times. Strong and weak coupling between modes of very different origins occurs when the space curvature brings them into resonance, leading to fine tailoring of the cavity photon energy and lifetime and the observation of non-Hermitian exceptional point (EP). At large space curvatures, the role of the WGMs is replaced by high-Q periodic modes protected by the high stability of island-like light trajectory. Our work demonstrates interesting physical mechanisms at the crosspoint of optical chaotic dynamics, non-Hermitian physics, and geodesic optical devices, and would initiate the novel area of geodesic microcavity photonics.

Manipulation of lasing modes in a circular-side octagonal microcavity laser with a spatially distributed current injection

We propose and demonstrate a circular-side octagonal microcavity (COM) semiconductor laser with a spatially distributed current injection for manipulating the lasing modes. There are two types of high-quality-factor whispering-gallery (WG) modes with distinct field patterns in a COM: the four-bounced quadrilateral modes and the eight-bounced octagonal modes. By designing two separated p-electrodes, the COM laser is divided into two regions that are pumped independently to select specific modes for lasing. The two types of WG modes lase simultaneously when the two regions are injected with equivalent currents. Degeneracy removal of the quadrilateral modes is observed in both simulation and experiment when the two regions are injected with inequivalent currents. The quadrilateral modes are suppressed when one of the two regions is un-injected or biased with a negative current, and single-octagonal-mode lasing is realized. The results show that the lasing modes can be efficiently manipulated with the spatially distributed current injection considering the distinct field patterns of different WG modes in the microcavities, which can promote the practical application of the microcavity lasers.

Transformation cavities with a narrow refractive index profile

Recently, gradient index cavities, or so-called transformation cavities, designed by conformal transformation optics, have been studied to support resonant modes with both high Q-factors and emission directionality. We propose a new, to the best of our knowledge, design method for transformation cavities to realize a narrower width of the refractive index profile, a great advantage in experimental implementations, without losing the benefits of conformal mapping. We study resonant modes with both high Q-factors and directional emission in newly designed transformation cavities, where the refractive index profile is 50% narrower than in previously proposed transformation cavities. By varying a system parameter with a fixed maximal value of the refractive index profile inside the cavity, the width of the refractive index profile narrows, the Q-factors become higher, and the near and far field patterns maintain their properties, namely, conformal whispering gallery modes and bidirectional emission, respectively.

Husimi functions for coupled optical resonators

Phase-space analysis has been widely used in the past for the study of optical resonant systems. While it is usually employed to analyze the far-field behavior of resonant systems, we focus here on its applicability to coupling problems. By looking at the phase-space description of both the resonant mode and the exciting source, it is possible to understand the coupling mechanisms as well as to gain insights and approximate the coupling behavior with reduced computational effort. In this work, we develop the framework for this idea and apply it to a system of an asymmetric dielectric resonator coupled to a waveguide.

Layered localization in a chaotic optical cavity

We propose and demonstrate the localization of resonant modes in a Limaçon optical microcavity with layered phase space involving both major and minor partial barriers. By regulating the openness of the cavity through the refractive index control, the minor partial barriers, which do not directly confine the long-lived resonant modes, are submerged successively into the leaky region. During the invalidation process of the minor partial barriers, it is found that the quality factor and the conjugate momentum of the resonant modes exhibit changes with the emergence of turning points. Such phenomena are attributed to the joint confinement effect by the minor partial barriers together with the major one in the layered phase space. This paper helps to improve the understanding of complex dynamics, and sheds light on the fine design of photonic devices with high performance.

Mode control through anti-Hermitian coupling in regular-polygonal microcavities with non-uniform gain and loss

We theoretically and numerically study optical modes in regular-polygonal microcavities with non-uniform gain and loss, where high quality (Q) whispering-gallery-like modes typically appear as superscar states. High Q superscar modes can be described by the propagating plane waves in an effective rectangle formed by unfolding the periodic orbits and exhibit regular and predictable spatial field distributions and transverse-mode spectra. With non-uniform gain and loss, anti-Hermitian coupling between the transverse modes with close frequencies occurs according to the mode coupling theory, which results in novel mode properties such as modified mode spectra and field patterns, and the appearance of exceptional points. Numerical simulation results are in good agreement with the theoretical analyses, and such analyses are also suitable for other kinds of high Q microcavities with non-uniform gain and loss. These results will be highly useful for studying non-Hermitian physics in optical microcavities and advancing the practical applications of microcavity devices.

Polygon Coherent Modes in a Weakly Perturbed Whispering Gallery Microresonator for Efficient Second Harmonic, Optomechanical, and Frequency Comb Generations

We observe high optical quality factor (Q) polygonal and star coherent optical modes in a lithium niobate microdisk. In contrast to the previous polygon modes achieved by deformed microcavities at lower mechanical and optical Q, we adopt weak perturbation from a tapered fiber for the polygon mode formation. The resulting high intracavity optical power of the polygon modes triggers second harmonic generation at high efficiency. With the combined advantages of a high mechanical Q cavity, we observe optomechanical oscillation in polygon modes for the first time. Finally, we observe frequency microcomb generation from the polygon modes with an ultrastable taper-on-disk coupling mechanism.

Optimization of conformal whispering gallery modes in limaçon-shaped transformation cavities

Directional light emission from high-Q resonant modes without significant Q-spoiling has been a long standing issue in deformed dielectric cavities. In limaçon-shaped gradient index dielectric cavities recently proposed by exploiting conformal transformation optics, the variation of Q-factors and emission directionality of resonant modes was traced in their system parameter space. For these cavities, their boundary shapes and refractive index profiles are determined in each case by a chosen conformal mapping which is taken as a coordinate transformation. Through the numerical exploration, we found that bidirectionality factors of generic high-Q resonant modes are not directly proportional to their Q-factors. The optimal system parameters for the coexistence of strong bidirectionality and a high Q-factor was obtained for anisotropic whispering gallery modes supported by total internal reflection.

InGaN/GaN microdisks enabled by nanoporous GaN cladding

The fabrication of nanoporous (NP) GaN is proposed as a generic technique to create out-of-plane index guiding for nitride microcavities. Compared to the conventional undercut technique, the proposed technique forms uniformly a low-index NP-GaN layer beneath the entire microcavity. Therefore, it supports all cavity modes (with different cavity geometries), while the undercut technique only supports the modes that reside at the circumference of a circular microcavity. As a proof of concept, GaN microdisk cavities were fabricated with the NP-GaN as the bottom low-index medium. A cold cavity with Q>2,000 was reported under continuous-wave pumping. Lasing was demonstrated with threshold optical pumping power P_th∼60  kW/cm² for the r=10  μm microdisk and P_th∼7  kW/cm² for the r=50  μm microdisk. A rate equation analysis was performed to estimate the spontaneous coupling factor β∼1E-3, which was one order of magnitude higher than the previous report of a nitride microdisk laser with an InGaN quantum well active region. Therefore, NP GaN was proven to be a suitable replacement of the undercut technique for future nitride microcavities applications.

High-Q chaotic lithium niobate microdisk cavity

Lithium niobate (LN) is the workhorse for modern optoelectronics industry and nonlinear optics. High quality (Q) factor LN microresonators are promising candidates for applications in optical communications, quantum photonics, and sensing. However, the phase-matching requirement of traditional evanescent coupling methods poses significant challenges to achieve high coupling efficiencies of the pump and signal light simultaneously, ultimately limiting the practical usefulness of these high Q factor LN resonators. Here, for the first time, to the best of our knowledge, we demonstrate deformed chaotic LN microcavities that feature directional emission patterns and high Q factors simultaneously. The chaotic LN microdisks are created using conventional semiconductor fabrication processes, with measured Q factors exceeding 10⁶ in the telecommunication band. We show that our devices can be free-space-coupled with high efficiency by leveraging directional emission from the asymmetric cavity. Using this broadband approach, we demonstrate a 58-fold enhancement of free-space collection efficiency of a second harmonic generation signal, compared with a circular microdisk.

Quasibound states in a triple Gaussian potential

We derive the transmission probabilities and delay times, and identify quasibound state structures in an open quantum system consisting of three Gaussian potential energy peaks, a system whose classical scattering dynamics we show to be chaotic. Such open quantum systems can serve as models for nanoscale quantum devices and their wave dynamics are similar to electromagnetic wave dynamics in optical microcavities. We use a quantum web to determine energy regimes for which the system exhibits the quantum manifestations of chaos, and we show that the classical scattering dynamics contains a significant amount of chaos. We also derive an exact expression for the non-Hermitian Hamiltonian whose eigenvalues give quasibound state energies and lifetimes of the system.

High-Q and highly reproducible microdisks and microlasers

High quality (Q) factor microdisks are fundamental building blocks of on-chip integrated photonic circuits and biological sensors. The resonant modes in microdisks circulate near their boundaries, making their performances strongly dependent upon surface roughness. Surface-tension-induced microspheres and microtoroids are superior to other dielectric microdisks when comparing Q factors. However, most photonic materials such as silicon and negative photoresists are hard to be reflowed and thus the realizations of high-Q microdisks are strongly dependent on electron-beam lithography. Herein, we demonstrate a robust, cost-effective, and highly reproducible technique to fabricate ultrahigh-Q microdisks. By using silica microtoroids as masks, we have successfully replicated their ultrasmooth boundaries in a photoresist via anisotropic dry etching. The experimentally recorded Q factors of passive microdisks can be as large as 1.5 × 10⁶. Similarly, ultrahigh Q microdisk lasers have also been replicated in dye-doped polymeric films. The laser linewidth is only 8 pm, which is limited by the spectrometer and is much narrower than that in previous reports. Meanwhile, high-Q deformed microdisks have also been fabricated by controlling the shape of microtoroids, making the internal ray dynamics and external directional laser emissions controllable. Interestingly, this technique also applies to other materials. Silicon microdisks with Q > 10⁶ have been experimentally demonstrated with a similar process. We believe this research will be important for the advances of high-Q micro-resonators and their applications.

Counting statistics of chaotic resonances at optical frequencies: Theory and experiments

A deformed dielectric microcavity is used as an experimental platform for the analysis of the statistics of chaotic resonances, in the perspective of testing fractal Weyl laws at optical frequencies. In order to surmount the difficulties that arise from reading strongly overlapping spectra, we exploit the mixed nature of the phase space at hand, and only count the high-Q whispering-gallery modes (WGMs) directly. That enables us to draw statistical information on the more lossy chaotic resonances, coupled to the high-Q regular modes via dynamical tunneling. Three different models [classical, Random-Matrix-Theory (RMT) based, semiclassical] to interpret the experimental data are discussed. On the basis of least-squares analysis, theoretical estimates of Ehrenfest time, and independent measurements, we find that a semiclassically modified RMT-based expression best describes the experiment in all its realizations, particularly when the resonator is coupled to visible light, while RMT alone still works quite well in the infrared. In this work we reexamine and substantially extend the results of a short paper published earlier [L. Wang et al., Phys. Rev. E 93, 040201(R) (2016)2470-004510.1103/PhysRevE.93.040201].

Miscellaneous Lasing Actions in Organo-Lead Halide Perovskite Films

Lasing actions in organo-lead halide perovskite films have been heavily studied in the past few years. However, due to the disordered nature of synthesized perovskite films, the lasing actions are usually understood as random lasers that are formed by multiple scattering. Herein, we demonstrate the miscellaneous lasing actions in organo-lead halide perovskite films. In addition to the random lasers, we show that a single or a few perovskite microparticles can generate laser emissions with their internal resonances instead of multiple scattering among them. We experimentally observed and numerically confirmed whispering gallery (WG)-like microlasers in polygon shaped and other deformed microparticles. Meanwhile, owing to the nature of total internal reflection and the novel shape of the nanoparticle, the size of the perovskite WG laser can be significantly decreased to a few hundred nanometers. Thus, wavelength-scale lead halide perovskite lasers were realized for the first time. All of these laser behaviors are complementary to typical random lasers in perovskite film and will help the understanding of lasing actions in complex lead halide perovskite systems.

Highly Reproducible Organometallic Halide Perovskite Microdevices based on Top-Down Lithography

Highly reproducible organometallic-halide-perovskite-based devices are fabricated by a manufacturing process, which is demonstrated. Various shapes that are hard to synthesize directly are fabricated, and many unique properties are achieved.The fabrication procedure is utilized to create a photodetector and the detection sensitivity is significantly improved. The results will bring revolutionary advancement to the future of lead-halide-perovskite-based optoelectronic devices.

Single Nanoparticle Detection Using Optical Microcavities

Detection of nanoscale objects is highly desirable in various fields such as early-stage disease diagnosis, environmental monitoring and homeland security. Optical microcavity sensors are renowned for ultrahigh sensitivities due to strongly enhanced light-matter interaction. This review focuses on single nanoparticle detection using optical whispering gallery microcavities and photonic crystal microcavities, both of which have been developing rapidly over the past few years. The reactive and dissipative sensing methods, characterized by light-analyte interactions, are explained explicitly. The sensitivity and the detection limit are essentially determined by the cavity properties, and are limited by the various noise sources in the measurements. On the one hand, recent advances include significant sensitivity enhancement using techniques to construct novel microcavity structures with reduced mode volumes, to localize the mode field, or to introduce optical gain. On the other hand, researchers attempt to lower the detection limit by improving the spectral resolution, which can be implemented by suppressing the experimental noises. We also review the methods of achieving a better temporal resolution by employing mode locking techniques or cavity ring up spectroscopy. In conclusion, outlooks on the possible ways to implement microcavity-based sensing devices and potential applications are provided.

Experimental Demonstration of Spontaneous Chirality in a Nonlinear Microresonator

Chirality is an asymmetric property widely found in nature. Here, we propose and demonstrate experimentally the spontaneous emergence of chirality in an on-chip ultrahigh-Q whispering-gallery microresonator, without broken parity or time-reversal symmetry. This counterintuitive effect arises due to the inherent Kerr-nonlinearity-modulated coupling between clockwise and counterclockwise propagating waves. Above an input threshold of a few hundred microwatts, the initial chiral symmetry is broken spontaneously, and the counterpropagating output ratio exceeds 20∶1 with bidirectional inputs. The spontaneous chirality in an on-chip microresonator holds great potential in studies of fundamental physics and applied photonic devices.

Ringing phenomenon in chaotic microcavity for high-speed ultra-sensitive sensing

The ringing phenomenon in whispering-gallery-mode (WGM) microcavities has demonstrated its great potential for highly-sensitive and high-speed sensing. However, traditional symmetric WGM microcavities have suffered from an extremely low coupling efficiency via free-space coupling because the emission of symmetric WGMs is non-directional. Here we report a new approach for high-speed ultra-sensitive sensing using the ringing phenomenon in a chaotic regime. By breaking the rotational symmetry of a WGM microcavity and introducing chaotic behaviors, we show that the ringing phenomenon in chaotic WGM microcavities extends over both the positive and the negative frequency detune, allowing the ringing phenomenon to interact with analytes over a much broader bandwidth with a reduced dead time. Because the coupling of the chaotic microcavity is directional, it produces a significantly higher signal output, which improves its sensitivity without the need of a fiber coupler.

Observation of an exceptional point in a two-dimensional ultrasonic cavity of concentric circular shells

We report observation of an exceptional point in circular shell ultrasonic cavities in both theory and experiment. In our theoretical analysis we first observe two interacting mode groups, fluid- and solid-based modes, in the acoustic cavities and then show the existence of an EP of these mode groups exhibiting a branch-point topological structure of eigenfrequencies around the EP. We then confirm the mode patterns as well as eigenfrequency structure around the EP in experiments employing the schlieren method, thereby demonstrating utility of ultrasound cavities as experimental platform for investigating non-Hermitian physics.

Postsynthetic and Selective Control of Lead Halide Perovskite Microlasers

The control of photoluminescence and absorption of lead halide perovskites plays a key role in their applications in micro- and nano-sized light emission devices and photodetectors. To date, the wavelength controls of lead halide perovskite microlasers are mostly realized by changing the halide mixture in solution. Herein, we report the postsynthetic and selective control of the optical properties of lead halide perovskites with conventional semiconductor technology. By selectively exposing a CH₃NH₃PbBr₃ microstructure with chlorine in inductively coupled plasma, we find that the wavelengths of absorption, photoluminescence, and laser emissions of exposed structures are blue-shifted around 50 nm. Most importantly, the device characteristics such as the photoluminescence intensities and laser thresholds are well maintained during the reaction process. We believe our finding will significantly boost the practical applications of lead halide perovskite based optoelectronics.

Free-space coupling efficiency in a high-Q deformed optical microcavity

The free-space coupling technique provides a promising means to excite high-Q whispering gallery modes in deformed microcavities, but the precise quantification of the coupling efficiency remains challenging because of the non-Lorentzian spectral lineshape in the transmission and the partial collection in emission. Here, we experimentally identify the free-space coupling efficiency by measuring the threshold of stimulated Raman scattering in a slightly deformed microcavity. The measured efficiency is up to 30%. Furthermore, the dependence of the coupling efficiency on the incident angle is obtained by focusing the laser beam on the microcavity periphery, which is consistent with the prediction of the mode field distribution. Finally, it is experimentally demonstrated that free-space coupling efficiencies remain high even when the focusing beam has been translated several micrometers, both horizontally and vertically.

Gain enhanced Fano resonance in a coupled photonic crystal cavity-waveguide structure

Systems with coupled cavities and waveguides have been demonstrated as optical switches and optical sensors. To optimize the functionalities of these optical devices, Fano resonance with asymmetric and steep spectral line shape has been used. We theoretically propose a coupled photonic crystal cavity-waveguide structure to achieve Fano resonance by placing partially reflecting elements in waveguide. To enhance Fano resonance, optical gain material is introduced into the cavity. As the gain increases, the transmission line shape becomes steepened and the transmissivity can be six times enhanced, giving a large contrast by a small frequency shift. It is prospected that the gain enhanced Fano resonance is very useful for optical switches and optical sensors.

Unidirectional emission from a cardioid-shaped microcavity laser

We find unidirectional emission in a cardioid-shaped microcavity laser. When a deformation parameter is well adjusted, rays starting around a period-5 unstable periodic orbit emit unidirectionally. To confirm the emission direction, we fabricate a laser by using an InGaAsP semiconductor and investigate emission characteristics. When the laser is excited by current injection with a dc current, resonances localized on the period-5 unstable periodic orbit emit unidirectionally.

The combination of directional outputs and single-mode operation in circular microdisk with broken PT symmetry

Monochromaticity and directionality are two key characteristics of lasers. However, the combination of directional emission and single-mode operation is quite challenging, especially for the on-chip devices. Here we propose a microdisk laser with single-mode operation and directional emissions by exploiting the recent developments associated with parity-time (PT) symmetry. This is accomplished by introducing one-dimensional periodic gain and loss into a circular microdisk, which induces a coupling between whispering gallery modes with different radial numbers. The lowest threshold mode is selected at the positions with least initial wavelength difference. And the directional emissions are formed by the introduction of additional grating vectors by the periodic distribution of gain and loss regions. We believe this research will impact the practical applications of on-chip microdisk lasers.

Inversed Vernier effect based single-mode laser emission in coupled microdisks

Recently, on-chip single-mode laser emissions in coupled microdisks have attracted considerable research attention due to their wide applications. While most of single-mode lasers in coupled microdisks or microrings have been qualitatively explained by either Vernier effect or inversed Vernier effect, none of them have been experimentally confirmed. Here, we studied the mechanism of single-mode laser operation in coupled microdisks. We found that the mode numbers had been significantly reduced to nearly single-mode within a large pumping power range from threshold to gain saturation. The detail laser spectra showed that the largest gain and the first lasing peak were mainly generated by one disk and the laser intensity was proportional to the wavelength detuning of two set of modes. The corresponding theoretical analysis showed that the experimental observations were dominated by internal coupling within one cavity, which was similar to the recently explored inversed Vernier effect in two coupled microrings. We believe our finding will be important for understanding the previous experimental findings and the development of on-chip single-mode laser.

Single Nanoparticle Detection Using Far-field Emission of Photonic Molecule around the Exceptional Point

Highly sensitive, label-free detection methods have important applications in fundamental research and healthcare diagnostics. To date, the detection of single nanoparticles has remained largely dependent on extremely precise spectral measurement, which relies on high-cost equipment. Here, we demonstrate a simple but very nontrivial mechanism for the label-free sizing of nanoparticles using the far-field emission of a photonic molecule (PM) around an exceptional point (EP). By attaching a nanoparticle to a PM around an EP, the main resonant behaviors are strongly disturbed. In addition to typical mode splitting, we find that the far-field pattern of the PM is significantly changed. Taking a heteronuclear diatomic PM as an example, we demonstrate that a single nanoparticle, whose radius is as small as 1 nm to 7 nm, can be simply monitored through the variation of the far-field pattern. Compared with conventional methods, our approach is much easier and does not rely on high-cost equipment. In addition, this research will illuminate new advances in single nanoparticle detection.

Nonlinear resonance-assisted tunneling induced by microcavity deformation

Noncircular two-dimensional microcavities support directional output and strong confinement of light, making them suitable for various photonics applications. It is now of primary interest to control the interactions among the cavity modes since novel functionality and enhanced light-matter coupling can be realized through intermode interactions. However, the interaction Hamiltonian induced by cavity deformation is basically unknown, limiting practical utilization of intermode interactions. Here we present the first experimental observation of resonance-assisted tunneling in a deformed two-dimensional microcavity. It is this tunneling mechanism that induces strong inter-mode interactions in mixed phase space as their strength can be directly obtained from a separatrix area in the phase space of intracavity ray dynamics. A selection rule for strong interactions is also found in terms of angular quantum numbers. Our findings, applicable to other physical systems in mixed phase space, make the interaction control more accessible.

The combination of high Q factor and chirality in twin cavities and microcavity chain

Chirality in microcavities has recently shown its bright future in optical sensing and microsized coherent light sources. The key parameters for such applications are the high quality (Q) factor and large chirality. However, the previous reported chiral resonances are either low Q modes or require very special cavity designs. Here we demonstrate a novel, robust, and general mechanism to obtain the chirality in circular cavity. By placing a circular cavity and a spiral cavity in proximity, we show that ultra-high Q factor, large chirality, and unidirectional output can be obtained simultaneously. The highest Q factors of the non-orthogonal mode pairs are almost the same as the ones in circular cavity. And the co-propagating directions of the non-orthogonal mode pairs can be reversed by tuning the mode coupling. This new mechanism for the combination of high Q factor and large chirality is found to be very robust to cavity size, refractive index, and the shape deformation, showing very nice fabrication tolerance. And it can be further extended to microcavity chain and microcavity plane. We believe that our research will shed light on the practical applications of chirality and microcavities.

Coherent destruction of tunneling in chaotic microcavities via three-state anti-crossings

Coherent destruction of tunneling (CDT) has been one seminal result of quantum dynamics control. Traditionally, CDT is understood as destructive interference between two intermediate transition paths near the level crossing. CDT near the level anti-crossings, especially the “locking”, has not been thoroughly explored so far. Taking chaotic microcavity as an example, here we study the inhibition of the tunneling via the strong couplings of three resonances. While the tunneling rate is only slightly affected by each strong coupling between two modes, the destructive interference between two strong couplings can dramatically improve the inhibition of the tunneling. A “locking” point, where dynamical tunneling is completely suppressed, has even been observed. We believe our finding will shed light on researches on micro- & nano-photonics.

Manipulation of high-order scattering processes in ultrasmall optical resonators to control far-field emission

By imposing a set of harmonic perturbations to a microcavity boundary, we induce conversion and mixing of orbital angular momentum of light via surface scattering. Multiple scattering paths are available due to high-order scattering, which can be greatly enhanced by quasidegenerate resonances. By manipulating the relative strengths of these scattering processes, we theoretically synthesize the angular momentum spectra of individual modes so as to control their far-field patterns. We demonstrate experimentally that in wavelength-scale cavities of a fixed shape, the neighboring modes can have dramatically different emission directionality. This phenomenon is robust against slight shape deviation and surface roughness, and provides a general mechanism to control the emission direction of ultrasmall resonators.

The impact of emission mechanisms on the long-lived states around avoided resonance crossings in chaotic microcavity

Here we demonstrate the impacts of emission mechanisms on the light confinements in open systems. Taking the oval-shaped cavities as examples, we show that the enhancements in quality (Q) factors are usually associated with the universal emissions. When the coupled resonances have similar far field patterns, the Q factor of the long-lived resonance has the possibility to be enhanced by the coherent destruction at the decay channels. Otherwise, the Q factors of long-lived resonances are usually reduced around the level crossings.

Pump-controlled directional light emission from random lasers

The angular emission pattern of a random laser is typically very irregular and difficult to tune. Here we show by detailed numerical calculations that one can overcome the lack of control over this emission pattern by actively shaping the spatial pump distribution. We demonstrate, in particular, how to obtain customized pump profiles to achieve highly directional emission. Going beyond the regime of strongly scattering media where localized modes with a given directionality can simply be selected by the pump, we present an optimization-based approach which shapes extended lasing modes in the weakly scattering regime according to any predetermined emission pattern.

Using basis sets of scar functions

We present a method to efficiently compute the eigenfunctions of classically chaotic systems. The key point is the definition of a modified Gram-Schmidt procedure which selects the most suitable elements from a basis set of scar functions localized along the shortest periodic orbits of the system. In this way, one benefits from the semiclassical dynamical properties of such functions. The performance of the method is assessed by presenting an application to a quartic two-dimensional oscillator whose classical dynamics are highly chaotic. We have been able to compute the eigenfunctions of the system using a small basis set. An estimate of the basis size is obtained from the mean participation ratio. A thorough analysis of the results using different indicators, such as eigenstate reconstruction in the local representation, scar intensities, participation ratios, and error bounds, is also presented.

Unidirectional spaser in symmetry-broken plasmonic core-shell nanocavity

The spaser, a quantum amplifier of surface plasmons by stimulated emission of radiation, is recognized as a coherent light source capable of confining optical fields at subwavelength scale. The control over the directionality of spasing has not been addressed so far, especially for a single-particle spasing nanocavity where optical feedback is solely provided by a plasmon resonance. In this work we numerically examine an asymmetric spaser – a resonant system comprising a dielectric core capped by a metal semishell. The proposed spaser emits unidirectionally along the axis of the semishell; this directionality depends neither on the incident polarization nor on the incident angle of the pump. The spasing efficiency of the semishell-capped resonator is one order of magnitude higher than that in the closed core-shell counterpart. Our calculations indicate that symmetry breaking can serve as a route to create unidirectional, highly intense, single-particle, coherent light sources at subwavelength scale.

Semiclassical approach to long time propagation in quantum chaos: predicting scars

We present two powerful semiclassical formulas for quantum systems with classically chaotic dynamics, one of them being the Fourier transform of the other. The first formula evaluates the autocorrelation function of a state constructed in the neighborhood of a short periodic orbit, where the propagation for times greater than the Ehrenfest time is computed through the contribution of homoclinic orbits. The second formula evaluates the square of the overlap of the proposed state with the eigenstates of the system, providing valuable information about the scarring phenomenon. Both expressions are successfully verified in the Bunimovich stadium billiard.

Local chirality of optical resonances in ultrasmall resonators

In wavelength-scale cavities with chiral-symmetric geometry, wave optical effects can introduce local chirality, that is, a spatial separation of the clockwise and counterclockwise propagating resonant modes. We show that this local chirality results in unidirectional lasing emission in the far field. In the presence of a waveguide, the local chirality also allows for directional evanescent coupling of the lasing modes, and the output direction can be varied by selecting the coupling position along the cavity boundary. Our results demonstrate that the local chirality of optical resonances can be utilized to control the output directionality and enhance the collection efficiency of emission from ultrasmall resonators.

Channeling chaotic rays into waveguides for efficient collection of microcavity emission

We demonstrate a robust and generic mechanism, which we term "chaos-assisted channeling," to achieve unidirectional output from wave-chaotic microcavities with long-lived resonances. It utilizes the coexistence of regular and chaotic ray dynamics in most deformed microcavities. Long-lived resonances are formed by total internal reflection on classical periodic orbits, and their leakage into the chaotic region of the phase space is efficiently channeled into an attached waveguide without additional loss. We explain this behavior using a ray dynamics analysis which is confirmed via numerical simulations and experimental demonstration.

Computationally efficient method to construct scar functions

The performance of a simple method [E. L. Sibert III, E. Vergini, R. M. Benito, and F. Borondo, New J. Phys. 10, 053016 (2008)] to efficiently compute scar functions along unstable periodic orbits with complicated trajectories in configuration space is discussed, using a classically chaotic two-dimensional quartic oscillator as an illustration.

Whispering gallery modes formed by partial barriers in ultrasmall deformed microdisks

Unexpected formation of regular high-Q whispering gallery modes in a deformed microdisk where the radius is of the order of the vacuum wavelength is explained in terms of partial barriers in phase space. Using a semiclassical approach to determine the action flux of the partial barriers, we successfully predict spectral ranges in which the high-Q modes can exist. Our analysis enables optimization of emission directionality and the Q factor of deformed ultrasmall microcavities.

Fresnel filtering of Gaussian beams in microcavities

We study the output from the modes described by the superposition of Gaussian beams confined in the quasi-stadium microcavities. We experimentally observe the deviation from Snell's law in the output when the incident angle of the Gaussian beam at the cavity interface is near the critical angle for total internal reflection, providing direct experimental evidence on the Fresnel filtering. The theory of the Fresnel filtering for a planar interface qualitatively reproduces experimental data, and a discussion is given on small deviation between the measured data and the theory.

Highly directional output from long-lived resonances in optical microcavity

We report a simple and robust mechanism that can result in highly directional emission from long-lived resonances in microcavities. By placing a nanoparticle (NP) into the evanescent wave region of microcavities, highly directional outputs with divergence angle ~1.9°-10° can be obtained in single or double directions. The perturbation of NP on evanescent waves preserves the high-quality (Q) factors, and the collimation of microcavities generates the highly directional outputs. Our numerical simulations show that this mechanism is very robust to the size of NP and the refractive index/separation distance/size of microcavities.