Weak-value amplification of the fast-light effect in rubidium vapor

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates how weak-value amplification can significantly enhance the fast-light effect in rubidium vapor, enabling larger pulse advancements with potential applications in quantum information and telecommunications.

Contribution

The study introduces a novel application of weak-value amplification to increase pulse advancement in atomic systems, surpassing natural dispersion effects.

Findings

Achieved a 4.2 μs pulse advancement, 15 times larger than natural dispersion.

Showed that combining weak-value amplification with atomic dispersion improves maximum pulse delay.

Potential for improved quantum gates and optical buffers in communication systems.

Abstract

We use weak-value amplification to enhance the polarization-sensitive fast-light effect from induced Raman absorption in hot rubidium vapor. We experimentally demonstrate that projecting the output signal into an appropriate polarization state enables a pulse advancement of 4.2 {\mu}s, which is 15 times larger than that naturally caused by dispersion. More significantly, we show that combining weak-value amplification with the dispersive response of an atomic system provides a clear advantage in terms of the maximum pulse advancement achievable for a given value of loss. This technique has potential applications for designing novel quantum-information-processing gates and optical buffers for telecommunication systems.