Storing light near an exceptional point

Yicheng Zhu, Jiankun Hou, Qi Geng, Boyi Xue, Yuping Chen, Xianfeng Chen, Li Ge () and Wenjie Wan ()
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Yicheng Zhu: Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Jiankun Hou: Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Qi Geng: Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Boyi Xue: Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Yuping Chen: Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Xianfeng Chen: Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Li Ge: The City University of New York
Wenjie Wan: Shanghai Jiao Tong University

Nature Communications, 2024, vol. 15, issue 1, 1-7

Abstract: Abstract Photons with zero rest mass are impossible to be stopped. However, a pulse of light can be slowed down and even halted through strong light-matter interaction in a dispersive medium in atomic systems. Exceptional point (EP), a non-Hermitian singularity point, can introduce an abrupt transition in dispersion. Here we experimentally observe room-temperature storing light near an exceptional point induced by nonlinear Brillouin scattering in a chip-scale 90-μm-radius optical microcavity, the smallest platform up to date to store light. Through nonlinear coupling, a Parity-Time (PT) symmetry can be constructed in optical-acoustical hybrid modes, where Brillouin scattering-induced absorption (BSIA) can lead to both slow light and fast light of incoming pulses. A subtle transition of slow-to-fast light reveals a critical point for storing a light pulse up to half a millisecond. This compact and room-temperature scheme of storing light paves the way for practical applications in all-optical communications and quantum information processing.

Date: 2024
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-52064-4

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