Injection of Orbital Angular Momentum and Storage of Quantized Vortices in Polariton Superfluids

T. Boulier, E. Cancellieri, N. D. Sangouard, Q. Glorieux, A. V. Kavokin, D. M. Whittaker, E. Giacobino, and A. Bramati
Phys. Rev. Lett. 116, 116402 – Published 18 March 2016
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Abstract

We report the experimental investigation and theoretical modeling of a rotating polariton superfluid relying on an innovative method for the injection of angular momentum. This novel, multipump injection method uses four coherent lasers arranged in a square, resonantly creating four polariton populations propagating inwards. The control available over the direction of propagation of the superflows allows injecting a controllable nonquantized amount of optical angular momentum. When the density at the center is low enough to neglect polariton-polariton interactions, optical singularities, associated with an interference pattern, are visible in the phase. In the superfluid regime resulting from the strong nonlinear polariton-polariton interaction, the interference pattern disappears and only vortices with the same sign are persisting in the system. Remarkably, the number of vortices inside the superfluid region can be controlled by controlling the angular momentum injected by the pumps.

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  • Received 9 July 2015

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.116.116402

© 2016 American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Condensed Matter, Materials & Applied Physics

Authors & Affiliations

T. Boulier1, E. Cancellieri2, N. D. Sangouard1, Q. Glorieux1, A. V. Kavokin3,4, D. M. Whittaker2, E. Giacobino1, and A. Bramati1,*

  • 1Laboratoire Kastler Brossel, UPMC-Sorbonne Universités, CNRS, ENS-PSL Research University, Collège de France, 4, place Jussieu Case 74, F-75005 Paris, France
  • 2Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield, Hicks Building, Hounsfield Road, Sheffield S3 7RH, United Kingdom
  • 3School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Southampton, Highfield, Southampton SO17 1BJ, United Kingdom
  • 4CNR-SPIN, Viale del Politecnico 1, Rome I-00133, Italy

  • *bramati@lkb.umpc.fr

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Issue

Vol. 116, Iss. 11 — 18 March 2016

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