Non-Gaussian Photon Correlations in Weakly Coupled Atomic Ensembles

Abstract: We develop a scattering theory formalism and use it to predict that a resonantly driven atomic ensemble weakly coupled to an optical mode can generate light with non-Gaussian correlations. Our approach -- based on a perturbative diagrammatic expansion of multi-photon interactions -- shows that photon-photon interaction mediated by the emitters causes the transmitted light to have a non-vanishing connected third-order correlation function $g_c^{(3)}$. We explain the temporal pattern of $g_c^{(3)}$ using the interaction processes in our diagrammatic expansion. A quantitative comparison with cascaded master equation simulations for small ensembles with optical depth $\mathrm{OD}\leq 2$ confirms that the perturbative results remain accurate across experimentally relevant optical depths and for drive strengths large enough to make the predicted non-Gaussian signatures detectable. We anticipate that state-of-the-art nanofibre-coupled atomic ensembles can experimentally demonstrate our predictions.