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SUMMARY:The Faraday effect in a slow-light medium - Ifan Hughes (Durham Un
 iversity)
DTSTART:20100301T153000Z
DTEND:20100301T170000Z
UID:TALK22401@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:6270
DESCRIPTION:The topic of controlling the speed of propagation of light is 
 a burgeoning one\, and there is much interest in particular is studying so
 -called “slow light”.  The motivation lies in the fundamental (What do
 es it mean for the refractive index of a medium to be a million?) to the a
 pplied (Can the extreme frequency dependence be exploited for technical ap
 plications?).  The ability to probe quantum systems on short timescales is
  central to the advancement of quantum technology.  Here we show that this
  is possible using an off-resonant dispersive probe.  By applying a magnet
 ic field to an atomic vapour the spectra of the group index for left and r
 ight circularly polarized light become displaced\, leading to the Faraday 
 effect.  We have investigated the Faraday effect as an atomic probe in a s
 low light medium.  The talk will review the physics of slow light and the 
 Faraday effect\, and show recent results where we demonstrate dynamic broa
 dband pulse switching by rotating a linearly polarized nanosecond pulse by
  pi/2 radians with negligible distortion and transmission close to unity. 
 (Siddons et al. Nature Photon 3\, 225-229 (2009)).
LOCATION:Rutherford building\, Seminar Room B
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