Nonperturbative decay dynamics in metamaterial waveguides

TL;DR

This paper explores the complex decay behavior of quantum emitters in metamaterial waveguides, revealing how nontrivial dispersion and spectral features influence emission dynamics beyond weak coupling.

Contribution

It provides a nonperturbative theoretical framework capturing spectral effects in metamaterial waveguides, including band-gap edges and fractional decay phenomena.

Findings

Inhibition of spontaneous emission at mu-near-zero band edges.

Divergence of decay rate at epsilon-near-zero band edges.

Identification of fractional decay dynamics influenced by band-edge properties.

Abstract

In this work we investigate the nonperturbative decay dynamics of a quantum emitter coupled to a composite right/left handed transmission line (CRLH-TL). Our theory captures the contributions from the different spectral features of the waveguide, providing an accurate prediction beyond the weak coupling regime, and illustrating the multiple possibilities offered by the nontrivial dispersion of metamaterial waveguides. We show that the waveguide is characterized by a band-gap with two asymmetric edges: (i) a mu-near-zero (MNZ) band edge, where spontaneous emission is inhibited and an unstable pole is smoothly transformed into a bound state, and (ii) an epsilon-near-zero (ENZ) band edge, where the decay rate diverges and unstable and real (bound state) poles coexist. In both cases, branch cut singularities contribute with fractional decay dynamics whose nature depend on the properties of the band-edges.