Optical Radiation Cooling and Heating in Integrated Devices (ORCHID)*
Abstract
*Formerly Quantum OptoMechanics Integrated on a Chip. (U)The objective of the Optical Radiation Cooling and Heating in Integrated Devices (ORCHID) program is to leverage advances in Photonics and Micro fabrication to develop integrated chips capable of exploiting quantum optomechanical applications. Although light is usually thought of as carrying energy but relatively little momentum, light confined to a high-finesse cavity can exert significant force on the cavity mirrors. When the mirror is allowed to vibrate by coupling it to a mechanical (spring-like) system, energy can be transferred between coupled optomechanical resonators. Depending on the detuning of the cavity, one can obtain either damping (cooling) or amplification (heating) of the mirror motion. Notable achievements in this field are the demonstration of mirror cooling (damping of the internal degree of motion) to sub-Kelvin (6 mK) temperatures and demonstration of radiation driven high-Q, high-frequency (1 GHz) oscillators. With sufficiently high cavity finesse and Q’s of the mechanical system, it is possible to reach a regime in which the mirror motion is no longer thermally limited. Instead, it becomes limited by the quantum mechanical radiation pressure force. Once this limit is reached, it is possible to take advantage of quantum mechanical effects without having to cool the system. It is anticipated this will result in a new generation of mass-sensing devices and ultra high-Q, high-frequency resonators controlled by light. In optical systems, it will be possible to efficiently squeeze light beyond the standard shot-noise limit producing light sources for infrared detection and quantum information applications.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Accomplishment
- Publication Date
- Oct 01, 2011
- Source ID
- 04ab6d75b55832fdc401bacf97109776