Enhanced coupling between ballistic exciton-polariton condensates through tailored pumping

TL;DR

This paper introduces a method to enhance spatial coupling between exciton-polariton condensates using tailored optical pumping, improving coherence and reducing condensation thresholds in semiconductor microcavities.

Contribution

It demonstrates a novel approach to control polariton outflows via shaped excitation beams, verified through numerical modeling, enabling larger-scale quantum fluids of light.

Findings

Tailored beam profiles direct polariton outflows effectively.

Enhanced coupling reduces power thresholds for condensation.

Potential for creating large-scale quantum light systems.

Abstract

We propose a method to enhance the spatial coupling between ballistic exciton-polariton condensates in a semiconductor microcavity based on available spatial light modulator technologies. Our method, verified by numerically solving a generalized Gross-Pitaevskii model, exploits the strong nonequilibrium nature of exciton-polariton condensation driven by localized nonresonant optical excitation. Tailoring the excitation beam profile from a Gaussian into a polygonal shape results in refracted and focused radial streams of outflowing polaritons from the excited condensate which can be directed towards nearest neighbors. Our method can be used to lower the threshold power needed to achieve polariton condensation and increase spatial coherence in extended systems, paving the way towards creating extremely large-scale quantum fluids of light.