Playing quantum billiards with light and matter »
An international team of physicists has created a quantum billiards game to gain new insights into the fundamental physics of exceptional points. Researchers from ANU, Japan, Singapore and Germany, have for the first time demonstrated exceptional points in a large-scale quantum system using a Bose-Einstein condensate of exciton-polaritons. The research opens a new direction in exciton-polariton physics and could lead to the discovery of new operating principles for future polariton-based electronics. "Exceptional points signify interesting and counter-intuitive phenomena, such as unexpected transparency of opaque materials, unidirectional propagation of light, or lasers that shut down when you pump them harder," said team leader Dr Elena Ostrovskaya, from the ANU Research School of Physics and Engineering. An exceptional point happens when two different states of a physical system coalesce into one. They have been predicted for quantum systems, but so far observed only with classical optical waves or microwaves. Exciton-polaritons are hybrids of light and matter.
