Theory of two-component superfluidity of microcavity polaritons

We develop a microscopic mean-field theory describing the coexistence of Bose-Einstein condensates of upper and lower polaritons (UP/LP) in a semiconductor microcavity. Incorporating interbranch scattering within a modified polariton Hamiltonian, we introduce a phenomenological population-split parameter α that quantifies the relative LP/UP occupations. At zero detuning, the critical temperature becomes independent of α, converging to a single value that marks the balanced, resonant regime. Away from resonance, variations in α lead to distinctive and experimentally resolvable changes in both the sound velocity cs and critical temperature Tc, relative to the singlecomponent (LP-only) condensate limit. The system under study consists of excitons confined in a transition metal dichalcogenide (TMDC) monolayer, particularly WSe2 embedded within a planar optical microcavity of GaAs where they strongly couple to cavity photons. Our analysis focuses on monolayer WSe2 embedded in a GaAs microcavity. We present results for GaAs/AlGaAs quantum wells embedded in a GaAs microcavity in the Appendix. While mean-field in scope, the framework provides analytic benchmarks and physical insight for future treatments that include dissipation and fluctuations in nonequilibrium polariton superfluids.

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Publication Details

Journal
Journal of Physics Condensed Matter
Published
2026-05-12
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-648x/ae6c80
Primary Topic
Strong Light-Matter Interactions
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

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article

Theory of two-component superfluidity of microcavity polaritons

Oleg L. Berman, P. B. Littlewood, Godfrey Gumbs, A. Nafis Arafat
Journal of Physics Condensed Matter
Strong Light-Matter Interactions
article

Theory of two-component superfluidity of microcavity polaritons

Oleg L. Berman, P. B. Littlewood, Godfrey Gumbs, A. Nafis Arafat
article en

Abstract

We develop a microscopic mean-field theory describing the coexistence of Bose-Einstein condensates of upper and lower polaritons (UP/LP) in a semiconductor microcavity. Incorporating interbranch scattering within a modified polariton Hamiltonian, we introduce a phenomenological population-split parameter α that quantifies the relative LP/UP occupations. At zero detuning, the critical temperature becomes independent of α, converging to a single value that marks the balanced, resonant regime. Away from resonance, variations in α lead to distinctive and experimentally resolvable changes in both the sound velocity cs and critical temperature Tc, relative to the singlecomponent (LP-only) condensate limit. The system under study consists of excitons confined in a transition metal dichalcogenide (TMDC) monolayer, particularly WSe2 embedded within a planar optical microcavity of GaAs where they strongly couple to cavity photons. Our analysis focuses on monolayer WSe2 embedded in a GaAs microcavity. We present results for GaAs/AlGaAs quantum wells embedded in a GaAs microcavity in the Appendix. While mean-field in scope, the framework provides analytic benchmarks and physical insight for future treatments that include dissipation and fluctuations in nonequilibrium polariton superfluids.

Journal of Physics Condensed Matter
The Graduate Center, CUNY (US), University of Illinois Chicago (US), Hunter College (US), University of Chicago (US), New York City College of Technology (US)
National Science Foundation, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Professional Staff Congress and City University of New York
Openalex Percentile: Top 99%
Strong Light-Matter Interactions
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Theory of two-component superfluidity of microcavity polaritons — Oleg L. Berman, P. B. Littlewood, et al. · Journal of Physics Condensed Matter (2026) | TGRS Research Map | TGRS