Polariton surface solitons under a resonant pump

TL;DR

This paper investigates the formation and control of stable dissipative surface solitons in exciton-polariton condensates within microcavity arrays, highlighting the effects of pump frequency, array structure, and noise on soliton behavior.

Contribution

It demonstrates how localized resonant pumping can generate and manipulate surface solitons in polariton arrays, revealing bistability and the influence of array parameters.

Findings

Surface solitons can be controlled by pump frequency.

Bistability occurs at high pump amplitudes.

Surface solitons can be excited from broadband noise.

Abstract

We address formation of stable dissipative surface solitons in the exciton-polariton condensate in one-dimensional array of microcavity pillars under the action of localized resonant pump acting in the edge resonator. We show that localization degree and peak amplitudes of surface solitons can be effectively controlled by the pump frequency and that the allowed energy gap of periodic structure determines the energy range, where surface solitons can form. One observes bistability at sufficiently large pump amplitudes and nonlinearity-induced shift of the position of resonance peak from the allowed energy band of the periodic array into its forbidden energy gap. Growth of the spatial period of the array reduces coupling between pillars and currents from surface pillar into bulk pillars that leads to the increase of the surface soliton amplitude. Strong expansion into the depth of array occurs for pump frequencies corresponding to the middle of the allowed energy band. Surface solitons can be excited from the broadband Gaussian noise. Above certain threshold noise level solitons from stable upper branch of the bistability curve are excited, while below threshold solitons from the lower branch form.