Field Quantization, Photons and Non-Hermitean Modes

S. A. Brown, B. J. Dalton

Published 2001-07-06, updated 2001-09-10Version 5

Field quantization in three dimensional unstable optical systems is treated by expanding the vector potential in terms of non-Hermitean (Fox-Li) modes in both the cavity and external regions. The cavity non-Hermitean modes (NHM) are treated using the paraxial and monochromaticity approximations. The NHM bi-orthogonality relationships are used in a standard canonical quantization procedure based on introducing generalised coordinates and momenta for the electromagnetic (EM) field. The quantum EM field is equivalent to a set of quantum harmonic oscillators (QHO), associated with either the cavity or the external region NHM. This confirms the validity of the photon model in unstable optical systems, though the annihilation and creation operators for each QHO are not Hermitean adjoints. The quantum Hamiltonian for the EM field is the sum of non-commuting cavity and external region contributions, each of which is sum of independent QHO Hamiltonians for each NHM, but the external field Hamiltonian also includes a coupling term responsible for external NHM photon exchange processes. Cavity energy gain and loss processes is associated with the non-commutativity of cavity and external region operators, given in terms of surface integrals involving cavity and external region NHM functions on the cavity-external region boundary. The spontaneous decay of a two-level atom inside an unstable cavity is treated using the essential states approach and the rotating wave approximation. Atomic transitions leading to cavity NHM photon absorption have a different coupling constant to those leading to photon emission, a feature resulting from the use of NHM functions. Under certain conditions the decay rate is enhanced by the Petermann factor.