Cavity Quantum Electrodynamics with Anderson-Localized Modes.
Published in Science 327, 1352 , 2010
An important challenge in quantum optics and quantum information technology is to improve the interaction between single photons and single quantum emitters. This requires highly engineered optical cavities that are inherently sensitive to manufacturing imperfections. In this post, we demonstrate a fundamentally different approach where clutter is used as a resource rather than a nuisance. We generate tightly confined Anderson-localized cavity modes by deliberately adding disorder to photonic crystal waveguides. The emission rate of a waveguide-embedded semiconductor quantum dot was enhanced by a factor of 15 at resonance with the localized Anderson mode, and 94% of the emitted single photons were coupled to the mode. Thus, disordered photonic media provide an efficient platform for quantum electrodynamics, offering an approach for intrinsically disorder-resistant quantum information devices.