Perspective on real-space nanophotonic field manipulation using non-perturbative light-matter coupling

TL;DR

This paper develops a comprehensive theory for multi-mode light-matter coupling in nanophotonic systems, revealing how interference effects can be used to dynamically manipulate electromagnetic fields at the nanoscale.

Contribution

It introduces a general theoretical framework for multi-mode coupling in reduced-dimensionality systems, validated by numerical simulations, and explores how to engineer and control polariton modes.

Findings

Multi-mode coupling leads to complex spectral features.

Interference between resonances can modify real-space field distributions.

External fields can dynamically tailor subwavelength electromagnetic fields.

Abstract

The achievement of large values of the light-matter coupling in nanoengineered photonic structures can lead to multiple photonic resonances contributing to the final properties of the same hybrid polariton mode. We develop a general theory describing multi-mode light-matter coupling in systems of reduced dimensionality and we explore their novel phenomenology, validating the predictions of our theory against numerical electromagnetic simulations. On the one hand, we characterise the spectral features linked with the multi-mode nature of the polaritons. On the other hand, we show how the interference between different photonic resonances can modify the real-space shape of the electromagnetic field associated with each polariton mode. We argue that the possibility of engineering nanophotonic resonators to maximise the multi-mode mixing, and to alter the polariton modes via applied external fields, could allow for the dynamical real-space tailoring of subwavelength electromagnetic fields.