Active optical micro-resonators seen as mesoscopic photonic atoms

Abstract

Exploiting the formal analogy between the transfer function of a micro-resonator and the optical susceptibility of an atomic medium, we investigate the spectral and energetic properties of active cavities seen as mesoscopic "photonic atoms". The resemblance is not limited to linear regime; a structural equivalent can be found for such fundamental processes as spontaneous emission, stimulated absorption and emission, saturation of the active medium or induced transparency.