Ultrafast All-Optical Switching via a Supersolid Phase Transition of Light
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arXiv
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| Autores principales: | , , |
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| Formato: | Preprint |
| Publicado: |
2026
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| _version_ | 1866917398583443456 |
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| author | Figueiredo, J. L. Mendonça, J. T. Terças, H. |
| author_facet | Figueiredo, J. L. Mendonça, J. T. Terças, H. |
| contents | We propose ultrafast all-optical switching exploiting the bistability between a spatially uniform photon superfluid and a spontaneously ordered supersolid in a driven-dissipative microcavity. The key ingredient is a tunable nonlocal photon--photon interaction engineered by embedding a high-mobility two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) inside the cavity. A drift current displaces the Fermi disk, imparting a negative region to the Lindhard interaction kernel at finite wavevectors and triggering a roton instability. The resulting bistable $S$-curve supports a write--hold--erase protocol in which short optical pulses toggle the system between branches with a switching contrast of order 120~dB. The hysteretic ON state persists under a constant sub-threshold drive after the write pulse is removed, realizing an all-optical bistable memory. Since the photon field couples additively to each embedded quantum well, stacking layers with distinct drift angles allows the roton profile to be engineered with higher-order symmetries, imprinting richer spatial order on the supersolid and enabling nonbinary generalizations of the switch. Operating in the ultrafast, sub-fJ regime, this platform outperforms most existing all-optical switches in contrast and reconfigurability. |
| format | Preprint |
| id |
arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2604_09097 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | Ultrafast All-Optical Switching via a Supersolid Phase Transition of Light Figueiredo, J. L. Mendonça, J. T. Terças, H. Quantum Gases Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics Optics We propose ultrafast all-optical switching exploiting the bistability between a spatially uniform photon superfluid and a spontaneously ordered supersolid in a driven-dissipative microcavity. The key ingredient is a tunable nonlocal photon--photon interaction engineered by embedding a high-mobility two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) inside the cavity. A drift current displaces the Fermi disk, imparting a negative region to the Lindhard interaction kernel at finite wavevectors and triggering a roton instability. The resulting bistable $S$-curve supports a write--hold--erase protocol in which short optical pulses toggle the system between branches with a switching contrast of order 120~dB. The hysteretic ON state persists under a constant sub-threshold drive after the write pulse is removed, realizing an all-optical bistable memory. Since the photon field couples additively to each embedded quantum well, stacking layers with distinct drift angles allows the roton profile to be engineered with higher-order symmetries, imprinting richer spatial order on the supersolid and enabling nonbinary generalizations of the switch. Operating in the ultrafast, sub-fJ regime, this platform outperforms most existing all-optical switches in contrast and reconfigurability. |
| title | Ultrafast All-Optical Switching via a Supersolid Phase Transition of Light |
| topic | Quantum Gases Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics Optics |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2604.09097 |