Controllable optical steady-state behavior at multi-frequency channels

Abstract

We identify a scheme in which we can control the behavior of an atomic medium to switch between optical bistability (OB) and optical multistability (OM) at multiple frequencies. The scheme relies on the absorption and dispersion characteristics of the optical medium at different frequencies, which can be modulated significantly by changing the magnetic field [Formula: see text] for tuning the energy difference between Zeeman sublevels. The result shows that the transition from OB to OM or vice versa can be easily realized not only at single frequency channel but also between multiple frequency channels. Furthermore, the optical steady-state behavior also varies with the ratio of the applied two coupling fields at any frequency channel. Such controllable switching between multiple frequency channels could also be used as some applications in all-optical switching and quantum information processing.