微腔或纳腔中的光—物质相互作用

Light-matter interaction in microcavity or nanocavity

光学微腔通常由透明介质做成,是用于将光子囚禁在其自身内部的结构。而光学纳腔是类比于微腔,泛指一类能将光场局域在极亚波长的纳米尺度上的结构,一般是由金属性材料与透明介质共同构成的。在与原子分子等量子体系相互作用方面,微腔和纳腔分别从提高腔的品质因子或减小腔的模式体积两个方面来增强光与物质的相互作用。两者殊途同归,区别又相互联系。微腔量子体系一般具有更长的寿命(或量子态相干时间),而纳腔体系的优点是体积小、超快响应且无需低温运行,在发展集成光学芯片方面更有优势。在实际应用中,两者各具特色,相得益彰。

Optical microcavities,usually made of transparent dielectrics,are architectures used for storing light.Similar to microcavities,optical nanocavities are nanostructures that can confine light within a deep-subwavelength volume.They are usually made of metals combined with transparent dielectrics.In the interaction with quantum systems such as atoms or molecules,microcavities enhance the strength of light-matter interaction via increasing the quality factor of the cavity,while nanocavities enhance the interaction by reducing the mode volume.The two kinds of cavities are distinctly different,but are related and can achieve similar functionality.Typically,microcavity systems have a longer lifetime(or coherence time)while nanocavities have the advantage of smaller dimensions,ultrafast response and room-temperature operation,which is more advantageous for potential applications in integrated optical circuits.Practically,both cavities have their own advantages,and complement each other.