Investigation of Bose-Einstein condensation effects with excitons in Cu₂2O.

Abstract

Experimental observations are presented on Bose-Einstein condensation of excitons in Cu2O at low temperatures. These observations deal with traveling exciton packets in a high quality natural crystal. The properties of the exciton packets are examined using two different excitation depths of formation of the excitons (affecting the size of initial exciton cloud). The properties of the condensate include for example: the amplitude, the velocity of the exciton packet, the critical conditions for condensation and phase diagram. Interference effects of two coherent packets are also studied using these different initial excitation depths. Stimulated emission of particles into the exciton packet by injection of thermal excitons in the crystal volume is investigated in greater detail as well as the attenuation of the lateral laser beam (used to create the thermal excitons that trigger the amplification phenomenon).