Controlling Rydberg atom-polariton interactions: from exceptional points to fast readout
Rydberg atoms represent a platform underpinning many recent developments in quantum computation, simulation, sensing, and metrology. They further facilitate optical nonlinearity at the single-photon level when coupled to photons propagating in atomic clouds, which form collective atomic excitations called Rydberg polaritons, strongly interacting with each other. Here, we experimentally explore interactions between a Rydberg polariton in an atomic ensemble and a single, adjacent, Rydberg atom. We discover three different regimes of quantum dynamics corresponding to polariton blockade, coherent exchange, and probabilistic hopping, which are defined by their distinct transmission characteristics, with a transition through an exceptional point occurring between blockade and coherent exchange. We investigate the applications of such interactions for fast, non-destructive detection of Rydberg atoms and present proof-of-principle demonstrations for their potential application in nonlinear photonic networks.
Authors
- Uroš Delić (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1426-7289)
- Shai Tsesses (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0167-3402)
- Adrian J. Menssen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4502-0788)
- Valentin Walther (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2934-7249)
- Soonwon Choi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1247-062X)
- Tamara Šumarac (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2333-4527)
- Mikhail D. Lukin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8658-1007)
- Emily H. Qiu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0008-0982-3034)
- Peiran Niu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3315-5722)
- Wenchao Xu
- Vladan Vuletić (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9786-0538)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Physical Review X
- Published
- 2026-11-09
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1103/bm5h-5jpx
- Citations
- 8
- Primary Topic
- Quantum optics and atomic interactions
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 9.71
Funders
- National Science Foundation
- U.S. Department of Energy
- Council for Higher Education
- Technion-Israel Institute of Technology
- Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
- Office of Science
- Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity
- Center for Ultracold Atoms, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada