Open AccessSlow and stored light by photo-isomerization induced transparency in dye doped chiral nematics
Author(s) -
Dong Wei,
U. Bortolozzo,
JeanPierre Huignard,
Stefania Residori
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
optics express
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.394
H-Index - 271
ISSN - 1094-4087
DOI - 10.1364/oe.21.019544
Subject(s) - slow light , phase conjugation , optics , materials science , photorefractive effect , optoelectronics , light scattering , liquid crystal , dispersion (optics) , brillouin scattering , photonic crystal , scattering , optical fiber , physics , laser
Decelerating and stopping light is fundamental for optical processing, high performance sensor technologies and digital signal treatment, many of these applications relying on the ability of controlling the amplitude and phase of coherent light pulses. In this context, slow-light has been achieved by various methods, as coupling light into resonant media, Brillouin scattering in optical fibers, beam coupling in photorefractive and liquid crystal media or engineered dispersion in photonic crystals. Here, we present a different mechanism for slowing and storing light, which is based on photo-isomerization induced transparency of azo-dye molecules hosted in a chiral liquid crystal structure. Sharp spectral features of the medium absorption/dispersion, and the long population lifetime of the dye metastable state, enable the storage of light pulses with a significant retrieval after times much longer than the medium response time.