Prof. Zhaoyang Zhang
School of Electronic Science and Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University, China
Title: Design of Reconfigurable Photonic Lattices via Atomic Coherence
Abstract:
Electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) involves the reduction of resonant absorption through quantum interference, rendering the atomic medium effectively transparent to the probe field when a strong coherent (coupling) field acts on a linked transition. Additionally, EIT significantly enhances and modulates the refractive index experienced by the probe field, encompassing both its real and imaginary parts. By spatially modulating the intensity of the coupling field in a periodic manner, the incident probe beam encounters a periodically altered refractive index under EIT conditions, indicative of the formation of a waveguide array. The atomic medium's instantaneous optical response to modifications in EIT-operating parameters facilitates in situ reconfigurability of such electromagnetically induced photonic lattices.
In this study, we experimentally showcase the novel dynamic behaviors of a laser field traversing spatially extended electromagnetically induced photonic lattices in coherently prepared rubidium atomic vapors. Leveraging the versatility of coherently prepared multilevel atomic media, our results encompass the design of dynamic 1D and 2D photonic lattices, loss difference-induced non-Hermitian drift in 2D honeycomb photonic lattices, and magnetic-free optical isolation based on photonic lattices, among others.
Biography:
Zhaoyang Zhang is a Professor in the School of Electronic Science and Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University, China. He has been engaged in the research of atomic physics, quantum optics, nonlinear optics, and optical properties of photonic lattices in multi-level atomic systems. Recently, he mainly works on dynamics of light in instantaneously reconfigurable electromagnetically induced photonic lattices based on atomic coherence. He has been the Principle Investigator of National Nature Science Foundation for Excellent Young Scholars, and National Key Research & Development Project for Young Scientists, etc.