Hui Cao, Assistant Professor
Department of Physics and Astronomy
Northwestern University

E-mail: h-cao@northwestern.edu
Phone: 847-491-3570

PhD, Stanford University, 1997

Research Areas
The Cao group focuses on microcavity quantum electrodynamics, and photon localization in random media. A microcavity can modify the electromagnetic field distribution, and thus alter the spontaneous emission process. The Cao group fabricates high quality microcavities using advanced semiconductor growth and nanofabrication technologies. They have realized the first semiconductor quantum dot microdisk laser.

Polymers and organic materials are promising nonlinear optical materials. To enhance their nonlinear optical response, they have utilized planar microcavities. The Cao group has achieved significant enhancement of second harmonic generation intensity in nonlinear optical polymers by confining the fundamental light in a planar microcavity.

K. J. Luo, J. Y. Xu, H. Cao, Y. Ma, S. H. Chang, S. T. Ho, and G. S. Solomon, "Dynamics of GaAs/AlGaAs Microdisk Lasers", Appl. Phys. Lett., vol. 77, pp. 2304-2306 (2000).

H. Cao, D. B. Hall, J. M. Torkelson, and C. Q. Cao, "Large Enhancement of Second Harmonic Generation in Polymer Films by Microcavities", Appl. Phys. Lett., vol. 76, p. 538-540 (2000).

H. Cao, J. Y. Xu, E. W. Seelig, and R. P. H. Chang, "Microlasers Made of Disordered Media", Appl. Phys. Lett., vol. 76, p. 2997-2999 (2000).

H. Cao, S. Jiang, S. Machida, Y. Takiguchi, Y. Yamamoto, "Collapse and Revival of Exciton-Polariton Oscillation in a Semiconductor Microcavity", Appl. Phys. Lett., vol. 71, p. 1461-1463 (1997).