Dark state lasers

We propose a new type of laser resonator based on imaginary "energy-level splitting" (imaginary coupling, or quality factor Q splitting) in a pair of coupled microcavities. A particularly advantageous arrangement involves two microring cavities with different free-spectral ranges (FSRs) in a configuration wherein they are coupled by "far-field" interference in a shared radiation channel. A novel Vernier-like effect for laser resonators is designed where only one longitudinal resonant mode has a lower loss than the small signal gain and can achieve lasing while all other modes are suppressed. This configuration enables ultra-widely tunable single-frequency lasers based on either homogeneously or inhomogeneously broadened gain media. The concept is an alternative to the common external cavity configurations for achieving tunable single-mode operation in a laser. The proposed laser concept builds on a high-Q "dark state" that is established by radiative interference coupling and bears a direct analogy to parity-time (PT) symmetric Hamiltonians in optical systems. Variants of this concept should be extendable to parametric-gain based oscillators, enabling use of ultrabroadband parametric gain for widely tunable single-frequency light sources

Tunable coupled-mode dispersion compensation and its application to on-chip resonant four-wave mixing

We propose and demonstrate localized mode coupling as a viable dispersion engineering technique for phase-matched resonant four-wave mixing (FWM). We demonstrate a dual-cavity resonant structure that employs coupling-induced frequency splitting at one of three resonances to compensate for cavity dispersion, enabling phase-matching. Coupling strength is controlled by thermal tuning of one cavity enabling active control of the resonant frequency-matching. In a fabricated silicon microresonator, we show an 8 dB enhancement of seeded FWM efficiency over the non-compensated state. The measured four-wave mixing has a peak wavelength conversion efficiency of -37.9 dB across a free spectral range (FSR) of 3.334 THz ($\sim$27 nm). Enabled by strong counteraction of dispersion, this FSR is, to our knowledge, the largest in silicon to demonstrate FWM to date. This form of mode-coupling-based, active dispersion compensation can be beneficial for many FWM-based devices including wavelength converters, parametric amplifiers, and widely detuned correlated photon-pair sources. Apart from compensating intrinsic dispersion, the proposed mechanism can alternatively be utilized in an otherwise dispersionless resonator to counteract the detuning effect of self- and cross-phase modulation on the pump resonance during FWM, thereby addressing a fundamental issue in the performance of light sources such as broadband optical frequency combs

Non-equilibrium current via geometric scatterers

We investigate non-equilibrium particle transport in the system consisting of a geometric scatterer and two leads coupled to heat baths with different chemical potentials. We derive expression for the corresponding current the carriers of which are fermions and analyze numerically its dependence of the model parameters in examples, where the scatterer has a rectangular or triangular shape.Comment: 18 pages, 8 figure

Ultra-low-loss CMOS-Compatible Waveguide Crossing Arrays Based on Multimode Bloch Waves and Imaginary Coupling

We experimentally demonstrate broadband waveguide crossing arrays showing ultra low loss down to $0.04\,$dB/crossing ($0.9\%$), matching theory, and crosstalk suppression over $35\,$dB, in a CMOS-compatible geometry. The principle of operation is the tailored excitation of a low-loss spatial Bloch wave formed by matching the periodicity of the crossing array to the difference in propagation constants of the 1$^\text{st}$- and 3$^\text{rd}$-order TE-like modes of a multimode silicon waveguide. Radiative scattering at the crossing points acts like a periodic imaginary-permittivity perturbation that couples two supermodes, which results in imaginary (radiative) propagation-constant splitting and gives rise to a low-loss, unidirectional breathing Bloch wave. This type of crossing array provides a robust implementation of a key component enabling dense photonic integration

The Source Density And Observability Of Pair-Instability Supernovae From The First Stars

Theoretical models predict that some of the first stars ended their lives as extremely energetic pair-instability supernovae (PISNe). With energies approaching 10(53) erg, these supernovae are expected to be within the detection limits of the upcoming James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), allowing observational constraints to be placed on the properties of the first stars. We estimate the source density of PISNe using a semi-analytic halo mass function based approach, accounting for the effects of feedback from star formation on the PISN rate using cosmological simulations. We estimate an upper limit of similar to 0.2 PISNe per JWST field of view at any given time. Feedback can reduce this rate significantly, e. g., lowering it to as little as one PISN per 4000 JWST fields of view for the most pessimistic explosion models. We also find that the main obstacle to observing PISNe from the first stars is their scarcity, not their faintness; exposures longer than a few times 10(4) s will do little to increase the number of PISNe found. Given this, we suggest a mosaic style search strategy for detecting PISNe from the first stars. Even rather high-redshift PISNe are unlikely to be missed by moderate exposures, and a large number of pointings will be required to ensure a detection.NSF AST-0708795, AST-1009928NASA ATFP NNX09AJ33GAstronom

Suppression of surface roughening during ion bombardment of semiconductors

Ion beams are used routinely for processing of semiconductors, particularly sputtering, ion implantation and direct-write fabrication of nanostructures. However, the utility of ion beam techniques is limited by crystal damage and surface roughening. Damage can be reduced or eliminated by performing irradiation at elevated temperatures. However, at these conditions, surface roughening is highly problematic due to thermal mobility of adatoms and surface vacancies. Here we solve this problem using hydrogen gas, which we use to stabilize surface mass flow and suppress roughening during ion bombardment of elemental and compound semiconductors. We achieve smooth surfaces during ion-beam processing, and show that the method can be enhanced by radicalizing H2 gas using a remote plasma source. Our approach is broadly applicable, and expands the utility of ion beam techniques for the processing and fabrication of functional materials and nanostructures.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figure

Alpha-Synuclein Pathology Coincides With Increased Number of Early Stage Neural Progenitors in the Adult Hippocampus

Alpha-synuclein pathology driven impairment in adult neurogenesis was proposed as a potential cause of, or at least contributor to, memory impairment observed in both patients and animal models of Parkinson’s disease (PD) and Dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB). Mice overexpressing wild-type alpha-synuclein under the Thy-1 promoter (Thy1-aSyn, line 61) uniquely replicate early cognitive deficits together with multiple other characteristic motor and non-motor symptoms, alpha-synuclein pathology and dopamine loss. Here we report overt intracellular accumulation of phosphorylated alphasynuclein in the hippocampus of these transgenic mice. To test whether this alters adult neurogenesis and total number of mature neurons, we employed immunohistochemistry and an unbiased stereology approach to quantify the distinct neural progenitor cells and neurons in the hippocampal granule cell layer and subgranular zone of 6 (prodromal stage) and 16-month (dopamine loss) old Thy1-aSyn mice. Surprisingly, we observed an increase in the number of early stage, i.e., Pax6 expressing, progenitors whereas the numbers of late stage, i.e., Tbr2 expressing, progenitors and neurons were not altered. Astroglia marker was increased in the hippocampus of transgenic mice, but this was not specific to the regions where adult neurogenesis takes place, arguing against a commitment of additional early stage progenitors to the astroglia lineage. Together, this uncovers a novel aspect of alpha-synuclein pathology in adult neurogenesis. Studying its mechanisms in Thy1-aSyn mice could lead to discovery of effective therapeutic interventions for cognitive dysfunction in PD and DLB