Abstract

The dynamic processes for two-state atoms coupled to the electromagnetic field of a cavity provide a paradigm for an investigation of quantum dynamics in a dissipative setting. While a number of features related to the structural properties of the atom-cavity system have been observed (e.g., cavity enhanced and inhabited spontaneous emission), the dynamic quantum evolution of the composite atom field entity can lead to phenomena that are manifestly nonclassical and not describable in terms of the evolution of a classical (stochastic) system.

© 1990 Optical Society of America