Prospects for strongly coupled atom-photon quantum nodes

Cooper, Nathan; Briddon, C.; Da Ros, E.; Naniyil, V.; Greenaway, M.T.; Hackermueller, L.

Abstract

We discuss the trapping of cold atoms within microscopic voids drilled perpendicularly through the axis of an optical waveguide. The dimensions of the voids considered are between 1 and 40 optical wavelengths. By simulating light transmission across the voids, we find that appropriate shaping of the voids can substantially reduce the associated loss of optical power. Our results demonstrate that the formation of an optical cavity around such a void could produce strong coupling between the atoms and the guided light. By bringing multiple atoms into a single void and exploiting collective enhancement, cooperativities ∼ 400 or more should be achievable. The simulations are carried out using a finite difference time domain method. Methods for the production of such a void and the trapping of cold atoms within it are also discussed.

Citation

Cooper, N., Briddon, C., Da Ros, E., Naniyil, V., Greenaway, M., & Hackermueller, L. (2019). Prospects for strongly coupled atom-photon quantum nodes. Scientific Reports, 9, Article 7798. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-44292-2

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Apr 23, 2019
• Online Publication Date: May 24, 2019
• Publication Date: May 24, 2019
• Deposit Date: May 16, 2019
• Publicly Available Date: May 24, 2019
• Journal: Scientific Reports
• Electronic ISSN: 2045-2322
• Publisher: Nature Publishing Group
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 9
• Article Number: 7798
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-44292-2
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/2059440
• Publisher URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-44292-2
• Additional Information: Received: 27 October 2018; Accepted: 23 April 2019; First Online: 24 May 2019; : The authors declare no competing interests.