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Electromagnetically Induced Photonic Structures using the AC Stark Effect


  Raphael D. Cohen [1]  ,  David Shwa [1]  ,  Nadav Katz [1]  ,  Bethany Little [2]  ,  David J. Starling [2]  ,  John C. Howell [2]  
 [1] The Racah Institute of Physics, The Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel
[2] Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY, USA

We create a Bragg grating and a Photonic Band Gap structure in heated Rubidium vapor, for controlled reflection, transmission and diffraction of light. Under the correct atomic density a control laser induces a periodic refractive index contrast in the Rubidium vapor by means of the AC Stark effect. Measurements of these structures are consistent with modeling. The nature of these structures gives them a potential for switching times comparable with the control laser detuning, which is greater than 1 GHz in our experiments.