Abstract

The strong coupling of photons and quantum well excitons in semiconductor microcavities leads to the formation of new eigenstates called polaritons. Due to their peculiar dispersion curve and the convenient experimental accessibility, microcavity polaritons have gained considerable interest in the recent years. Polariton states can be selectively populated by choosing the excitation angle and the wavelength of the excitation laser. After a lifetime of a few picoseconds the polariton decays and a photon is emitted from the cavity. This photon carries the whole information on the underlying polariton state.

© 2015 IEEE