Laboratoire de Physique Théorique
Toulouse - UMR 5152

In my talk, I will report on the derivation and resolution of a novel master equation governing the cooperative spontaneous emission from an ensemble of cold atoms [1]. Our master equation for the atomic internal degrees of freedom incorporates the effects of the quantization of the atomic center-of-mass motion. It provides a unifying picture of the consequences of recoil and indistinguishability of atoms beyond the Lamb-Dicke regime, both on their dissipative and conservative internal dynamics. I will discuss general expressions for the decay rates and dipole-dipole shifts entering our master equation. As an application of our formalism, I will then investigate the consequences of indistinguishability of cold atoms on two hallmarks of cooperative emission processes : Dicke super- and subradiance [2].

[1] F. Damanet, D. Braun, and J. Martin, Phys. Rev. A 93, 022124 (2016) ; ibid. 94, 033838 (2016).

[2] R. H. Dicke, Phys. Rev. 93, 99 (1954).