J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 28, 2007–2013 (2011)

Using a Bogoliubov Hamiltonian two-mode approximation approach, Bin Chen and colleagues from Shanghai Jiao Tong University in China have theoretically proposed a tunable all-optical Kerr switch in an optomechanical cavity with a Bose–Einstein condensate (BEC). For a BEC of 87Rb atoms trapped in a Fabry–Pérot cavity by a crossed-beam dipole field, the researchers say that the collective motion of the BEC is analogous to a moving mirror through the optomechanical system. The study shows that modulation of the pump beam power switches the transmitted intensity by modifying the cross-section of a Kerr-type nonlinearity in the BEC–cavity system. The optical Kerr effect disappears quickly when the pump beam is switched off. The researchers say that a significant nonlinear response can be expected for low-power pump beams, and they hope to carry out experiments to confirm these predictions.