SciPost Submission Page
Phonon Pumping by Modulating the Ultrastrong Vacuum
by Fabrizio Minganti, Alberto Mercurio, Fabio Mauceri, Marco Scigliuzzo, Salvatore Savasta, Vincenzo Savona
Submission summary
Authors (as registered SciPost users): | Alberto Mercurio · Fabrizio Minganti |
Submission information | |
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Preprint Link: | https://arxiv.org/abs/2309.15891v2 (pdf) |
Date accepted: | 2024-06-27 |
Date submitted: | 2024-06-12 11:18 |
Submitted by: | Minganti, Fabrizio |
Submitted to: | SciPost Physics |
Ontological classification | |
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Academic field: | Physics |
Specialties: |
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Approach: | Theoretical |
Abstract
The vacuum (i.e., the ground state) of a system in ultrastrong light-matter coupling contains particles that cannot be emitted without any dynamical perturbation and is thus called virtual. We propose a protocol for inducing and observing real mechanical excitations of a mirror enabled by the virtual photons in the ground state of a tripartite system, where a resonant optical cavity is ultrastrongly coupled to a two-level system (qubit) and, at the same time, optomechanically coupled to a mechanical resonator. Real phonons are coherently emitted when the frequency of the two-level system is modulated at a frequency comparable to that of the mechanical resonator and, therefore much lower than the optical frequency. We demonstrate that this hybrid effect is a direct consequence of the virtual photon population in the ground state. Within a classical physics analogy, attaching a weight to a spring only changes its resting position, whereas dynamically modulating the weight makes the system oscillate. In our case, however, the weight is the vacuum itself. We propose and accurately characterize a hybrid superconducting-optomechanical setup based on available state-of-the-art technology, where this effect can be experimentally observed.
Author indications on fulfilling journal expectations
- Provide a novel and synergetic link between different research areas.
- Open a new pathway in an existing or a new research direction, with clear potential for multi-pronged follow-up work
- Detail a groundbreaking theoretical/experimental/computational discovery
- Present a breakthrough on a previously-identified and long-standing research stumbling block
Author comments upon resubmission
List of changes
In the updated version, we have:
-- Added a discussion on the effect of dephasing.
-- Slightly rephrased the conclusions.
-- Included more articles in the bibliography.
-- Corrected some typos.
Current status:
Editorial decision:
For Journal SciPost Physics: Publish
(status: Editorial decision fixed and (if required) accepted by authors)