Emergent Molecular Properties In The Strong Light-Matter Coupling Regime

This talk is a part of the MQC 2023-24 Seminar Series.

Zoom information:

https://umich.zoom.us/j/94695496146

Passcode: Email Ann Stals (amriggs) for passcode.

Abstract: Can optical environment change the physical or chemical properties of matter? This question arises for molecules in the strong light-matter coupling regime where photons can no longer be distinguished from a given molecular electronic or vibrational excitation. The resulting hybrid states, known as polaritons, are commonly formed by placing molecules within a microcavity (e.g. a closely-spaced pair of mirrors) and can have different energies, coherence, and vibrational characteristics than the bare molecules do outside of the cavity, raising the possibility of emergent physical/chemical properties for the hybrid system. In this talk, I will discuss our recent work exploring a variety of molecular properties ranging from photoinduced electron transfer to optical nonlinearity and the extent to which new physics emerge in the strong light-matter coupling regime.