2026-01-21 バッファロー大学(UB)
A University at Buffalo-led study has found that photons and atoms don’t always rapidly thermalize when light is forced to repeatedly interact with matter.
＜関連情報＞
- https://www.buffalo.edu/news/releases/2026/01/light-matter-thermalization.html
- https://journals.aps.org/prl/abstract/10.1103/gqjz-tyqg
共振器結合型リュードベリアレイにおける光と物質の予熱化 Prethermalization of Light and Matter in Cavity-Coupled Rydberg Arrays
Aleksandr N. Mikheev, Hossein Hosseinabadi, and Jamir Marino
Physical Review Letters Published: 21 November, 2025
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/gqjz-tyqg
Abstract
We explore the dynamics of two-dimensional Rydberg atom arrays coupled to a single-mode optical cavity, employing nonequilibrium diagrammatic techniques to capture nonlinearities and fluctuations beyond mean-field theory. We discover a novel prethermalization regime driven by the interplay between short-range Rydberg interactions and long-range photon-mediated interactions. In this regime, matter and light equilibrate at distinct—and in some cases opposite—effective temperatures, resembling the original concept of prethermalization from particle physics. Our results establish strongly correlated AMO platforms as tools to investigate fundamental questions in statistical mechanics, including quantum thermalization in higher-dimensional systems.
