Replica Symmetry Breaking in FRET‐Assisted Random Laser Based on Electrospun Polymer Fiber

Abstract

Spin‐glass theory has been widely introduced to describe the statistical behaviors in complex physical systems. By analogy between disorder photonics and other complex systems, the glassy behavior, especially the replica symmetry breaking (RSB) phenomenon, has been observed in random lasers. However, previous studies only analyzed the statistical properties of the random laser systems with single gain material. Here, the first experimental evidence of the glassy behavior in a random laser with complex energy level structure is reported. This novel random laser is demonstrated based on the electrospun polymer fibers with the assistance of Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET). The electrospinning technology employed in the experiment herein promises high‐volume production of random laser devices with multiple energy levels, enabling the comprehensive investigation of lasing properties in multi‐energy level random laser system. Clear paramagnetic phase and spin‐glass phase are observed in the FRET‐assisted random laser under different pump energies. The RSB phase transition is verified to occur at the laser threshold, which is robust among the random lasers with different donor–acceptor ratio. The finding of RSB in FRET‐assisted random laser provides a new statistical analysis method toward the laser system with complex energy level, for example, quantum cascade laser.

Statistical properties of Er/Yb co-doped random Rayleigh feedback fiber laser

“…In the spectral domain, a scanning Fabry-Perot interferometer was used to realize the real-time spectrum measurement of RRFL, and narrow spectral components with temporally varying intensity were revealed for the first time [15] , to the best of our knowledge. The Lévy spectral intensity statistics was further presented in RRFL [16] , and the statistical evolution with the pump power was found similar to the case of higher-dimensional random lasers [17] and random grating-based random fiber lasers [18] . In the temporal domain, Gorbunov and collaborators for the first time, to the best of our knowledge, experimentally investigated the temporal intensity dynamics of RRFL and discovered strong intensity fluctuations on a short time scale [19] .…”

Coherent Förster resonance energy transfer: A new paradigm for electrically driven quantum dot random lasers

“…These results are in agreement with the prediction based on the CFRET process. A number of optically pumped FRET-assisted random lasers have been studied recently (45)(46)(47)(48)(49)(50)(51). In all these studies, with the incorporation of donor molecules, the threshold of the random laser can be efficiently suppressed and the peak intensity can be enhanced compared with the nondoped one.…”

Simultaneous evaluation of intermittency effects, replica symmetry breaking and modes dynamics correlations in a Nd:YAG random laser

“…RSB is a phenomenon which was first experimentally demonstrated in RLs by Ghofraniha and co-workers 33 , and since then has attracted a lot of attention 34 – 36 , with reports in different RL schemes and gain-scatterers combinations. The concept of RSB, introduced by Parisi in the context of disordered magnetic spin glasses 37 , 38 , refers to the property that identically-prepared systems (i.e., replicas) can reach distinct states and lead to distinct measurements of observables.…”