Photon Bose-Einstein Condensation in Semiconductors: A Quantum Kinetic Theory

Fuente: arXiv
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Autores principales: Figueiredo, José L., Schofield, Ross C., Fu, Ming, Nyman, Robert A., Oulton, Rupert, Terças, Hugo, Mintert, Florian
Formato: Preprint
Publicado: 2025
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author Figueiredo, José L.
Schofield, Ross C.
Fu, Ming
Nyman, Robert A.
Oulton, Rupert
Terças, Hugo
Mintert, Florian
author_facet Figueiredo, José L.
Schofield, Ross C.
Fu, Ming
Nyman, Robert A.
Oulton, Rupert
Terças, Hugo
Mintert, Florian
contents Photon condensation in semiconductor microcavities is a transformative technique for engineering quantum states of light at room temperature by tailoring strong but incoherent light-matter interactions. While continuous-wave and electrical pumping offer exceptional prospects for miniaturized quantum photonic technologies, harnessing these requires conceptual advances in understanding nonequilibrium light-matter dynamics in semiconductors. We resolve this challenge through an \textit{ab initio} quantum kinetic theory capturing how Coulomb interactions of optically excited carriers and phonon scattering mediate photon thermalization and condensation in semiconductors. Our microscopic model shows that at high carrier densities, thermalization is dominated by carrier-carrier Coulomb scattering, in clear contrast to the rovibrational relaxation that governs dye-based photon condensates. The theory predicts a rich nonequilibrium phase diagram with thermal, Bose-condensed, multimode, and lasing phases, quantitatively in agreement with recent experiments. Crucially, we identify how cavity detuning controls transitions between equilibrium and gain-dominated regimes, enabling tailored design of coherent light sources. This work thus provides the foundation for semiconductor-based quantum photonic devices operating beyond conventional laser paradigms.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2509_05062
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Photon Bose-Einstein Condensation in Semiconductors: A Quantum Kinetic Theory
Figueiredo, José L.
Schofield, Ross C.
Fu, Ming
Nyman, Robert A.
Oulton, Rupert
Terças, Hugo
Mintert, Florian
Optics
Photon condensation in semiconductor microcavities is a transformative technique for engineering quantum states of light at room temperature by tailoring strong but incoherent light-matter interactions. While continuous-wave and electrical pumping offer exceptional prospects for miniaturized quantum photonic technologies, harnessing these requires conceptual advances in understanding nonequilibrium light-matter dynamics in semiconductors. We resolve this challenge through an \textit{ab initio} quantum kinetic theory capturing how Coulomb interactions of optically excited carriers and phonon scattering mediate photon thermalization and condensation in semiconductors. Our microscopic model shows that at high carrier densities, thermalization is dominated by carrier-carrier Coulomb scattering, in clear contrast to the rovibrational relaxation that governs dye-based photon condensates. The theory predicts a rich nonequilibrium phase diagram with thermal, Bose-condensed, multimode, and lasing phases, quantitatively in agreement with recent experiments. Crucially, we identify how cavity detuning controls transitions between equilibrium and gain-dominated regimes, enabling tailored design of coherent light sources. This work thus provides the foundation for semiconductor-based quantum photonic devices operating beyond conventional laser paradigms.
title Photon Bose-Einstein Condensation in Semiconductors: A Quantum Kinetic Theory
topic Optics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2509.05062