Emission from quantum-dot high-β microcavities: transition from spontaneous emission to lasing and the effects of superradiant emitter coupling
- Technische Univ. Berlin (Germany). Inst. fur Festkorperphysik
- Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)
- Univ. of Wurzburg (Germany). Lehrstuhl fur Technische Physik
- Univ. of St. Andrews, Scotland (United Kingdom). School of Physics and Astronomy
- Univ. of Wurzburg (Germany). Lehrstuhl fur Technische Physik; Univ. of St. Andrews, Scotland (United Kingdom). School of Physics and Astronomy
Measured and calculated results are presented for the emission properties of a new class of emitters operating in the cavity quantum electrodynamics regime. The structures are based on high-finesse GaAs/AlAs micropillar cavities, each with an active medium consisting of a layer of InGaAs quantum dots (QDs) and the distinguishing feature of having a substantial fraction of spontaneous emission channeled into one cavity mode (high β-factor). This paper demonstrates that the usual criterion for lasing with a conventional (low β-factor) cavity, that is, a sharp non-linearity in the input–output curve accompanied by noticeable linewidth narrowing, has to be reinforced by the equal-time second-order photon autocorrelation function to confirm lasing. The article also shows that the equal-time second-order photon autocorrelation function is useful for recognizing superradiance, a manifestation of the correlations possible in high-β microcavities operating with QDs. In terms of consolidating the collected data and identifying the physics underlying laser action, both theory and experiment suggest a sole dependence on intracavity photon number. Evidence for this assertion comes from all our measured and calculated data on emission coherence and fluctuation, for devices ranging from light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and cavity-enhanced LEDs to lasers, lying on the same two curves: one for linewidth narrowing versus intracavity photon number and the other for g(2)(0) versus intracavity photon number.
- Research Organization:
- Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA); European Union (EU); German Research Foundation (DFG)
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC04-94AL85000; 615613
- OSTI ID:
- 1398781
- Report Number(s):
- SAND-2017-9890J; lsa201730
- Journal Information:
- Light, Science & Applications, Vol. 6, Issue 8; ISSN 2047-7538
- Publisher:
- Nature Publishing GroupCopyright Statement
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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