Recent advances in optical studies of condensed matter have led to the emergence of phenomena that have conventionally been studied in the realm of quantum optics. These studies have not only deepened our understanding of light-matter interactions but also introduced aspects of many-body correlations inherent in optical processes in condensed matter systems. This article is concerned with superradiance (SR), a profound quantum optical process predicted by Dicke in 1954. The basic concept of SR applies to a general $N$-body system where constituent oscillating dipoles couple together through interaction with a common light field and accelerate the radiative decay of the system. In the most fascinating manifestation of SR, known as superfluorescence (SF), an incoherently prepared system of $N$ inverted atoms spontaneously develops macroscopic coherence from vacuum fluctuations and produces a delayed pulse of coherent light whose peak intensity $\propto N^2$. Such SF pulses have been observed in atomic and molecular gases, and their intriguing quantum nature has been unambiguously demonstrated. Here, we focus on the rapidly developing field of research on SR in solids, where not only photon-mediated coupling but also strong Coulomb interactions and ultrafast scattering exist. We describe SR and SF in molecular centers in solids, molecular aggregates and crystals, quantum dots, and quantum wells. In particular, we will summarize a series of studies we have recently performed on quantum wells in strong magnetic fields. These studies show that cooperative effects in solid-state systems are not merely small corrections that require exotic conditions to be observed; rather, they can dominate the nonequilibrium dynamics and light emission processes of the entire system of interacting electrons.
Dicke superradiance in degenerate quantum matter: interplay of exchange statistics and spatial confinement
Friedrich-Alexander Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU)(埃尔朗根-纽伦堡弗里德里希·亚历山大大学);Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light(马克斯·普朗克光科学研究所);TU Darmstadt(达姆施塔特工业大学)
Disorder-Induced Enhancement of Fermionic Superradiance
CNR-INO(意大利国家研究委员会光学研究所);University of Trento(特伦托大学);INFN-TIFPA(意大利国家核物理研究所-特伦托基础物理与应用研究所);Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Thiruvananthapuram(印度科学教育研究所特里凡得琅分校)