title: Quantum many-body dynamics in optomechanical arrays.
abstract: We study the nonlinear driven dissipative quantum dynamics of an array of optomechanical systems. At each site of such an array, a localized mechanical mode interacts with a laser-driven cavity mode via radiation pressure, and both photons and phonons can hop between neighboring sites. The competition between coherent interaction and dissipation gives rise to a rich phase diagram characterizing the optical and mechanical many-body states. For weak intercellular coupling, the mechanical motion at different sites is incoherent due to the influence of quantum noise. When increasing the coupling strength, however, we observe a transition towards a regime of phase-coherent mechanical oscillations. We employ a Gutzwiller ansatz as well as semiclassical Langevin equations on finite lattices, and we propose a realistic experimental implementation in optomechanical crystals.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Theoretical Physics, Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen, Germany. max.ludwig@physik.uni-erlangen.de
authors.forename: Max
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ludwig
authors.forename: Florian
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Marquardt