Abstract
Light trapping and radiation process from linear reciprocal photonic resonators is one of the fundamental processes in optical science and engineering. Recently, the concept of coherent virtual absorption (CVA) of light was introduced and investigated for planar and cylindrical optical structures. The key feature of CVA is that by engineering the time-dependence of the excitation waveform, one can temporarily store all the input energy into the optical structure without any leakage. Here we further explore this novel concept in integrated photonic setups made of microring resonators. By using coupled-mode theory (CMT), we derive an analytical expression for CVA in this platform. This in turn allows us to make the connection with the notion of coherent perfect absorption (CPA) as well as extending our analysis to active resonators (having optical gain). We next provide a physical insight into this process by using a simple model made of cascaded beam splitters. Importantly, we confirm our results using a full-wave analysis of realistic material systems. Finally, we discuss the limitation on the CVA process due to waveform mismatch and nonlinear effects.
Highlights
Light-matter interaction can be tailored by engineering different design parameters such as optical refractive index, magnetic permeability, and/or optical nonlinear interactions, to mention just a few examples [1]
We explore the notion of coherent virtual absorption (CVA) in a different setting of integrated photonic circuits made of microring resonators
In the case of coherent perfect absorption (CPA) based on critical coupling, the optical power is absorbed in the system due to the material loss, while in the scenario of CVA, the power is stored inside the resonator due to destructive interference at the output port, as we explain in more detail below
Summary
Light-matter interaction can be tailored by engineering different design parameters such as optical refractive index, magnetic permeability, and/or optical nonlinear interactions, to mention just a few examples [1]. It turns out that the phenomenon is applicable for systems without any time-reversal symmetry [38] or even more surprising in the absence of any lossy elements [39] In the latter case, it was shown that if the time dependence of the incident waveform is tailored, one can temporarily store all the incident energy in the structure without any leakage. We explore the notion of CVA in a different setting of integrated photonic circuits made of microring resonators This platform is relevant to technological applications in optical communication systems and quantum information. Our results indicate that this scheme can be fragile and may require fine-tuning of the input signal parameters
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