Controlling the dynamics of a coupled atom-cavity system by pure dephasing : basics and potential applications in nanophotonics

TL;DR

This paper explores how pure dephasing affects atom-cavity interactions, revealing it can enhance device performance and enable lasing despite detuning, with implications for nanophotonics.

Contribution

It introduces an effective atom-cavity coupling rate that generalizes the Purcell factor for broad emitters and demonstrates dephasing as a resource for nanophotonic device optimization.

Findings

Pure dephasing can restore lasing in detuned systems.

The effective coupling rate generalizes the Purcell factor.

Dephasing can optimize single photon sources.

Abstract

The influence of pure dephasing on the dynamics of the coupling between a two-level atom and a cavity mode is systematically addressed. We have derived an effective atom-cavity coupling rate that is shown to be a key parameter in the physics of the problem, allowing to generalize the known expression for the Purcell factor to the case of broad emitters, and to define strategies to optimize the performances of broad emitters-based single photon sources. Moreover, pure dephasing is shown to be able to restore lasing in presence of detuning, a further demonstration that decoherence can be seen as a fundamental resource in solid-state cavity quantum electrodynamics, offering appealing perspectives in the context of advanced nano-photonic devices.