Spatial photon trapping: tailoring the optical properties of semiconductor microcavities

The optical mode spectrum of microcavities is modified by introducing lateral photon confinement, which is achieved through patterning the resonator. By adjusting the resonator dimensions for example, systems with three-dimensional photon confinement are realized. By assembling these resonators, photonic crystal-like band structures are obtained. The modified mode spectrum is of interest for tailoring light-matter interactions, which is demonstrated by two examples: for quantum dots embedded in such cavities, an enhancement as well as suppression of the spontaneous emission is shown. The modified mode spectrum also allows for tailoring elastic polariton pair scattering.