Deep Strong light-matter Coupling in 3D Kane Fermions

Original Abstract

Deep strong light-matter coupling represents an extreme non-perturbative regime of quantum electrodynamics, in which the interaction strength exceeds the bare frequencies of the uncoupled systems. The ground state features strong quantum correlations between photons and matter excitations, and new cavity-driven phase transitions are expected to occur. Whether a superradiant quantum phase transition, marked by spontaneous dipole ordering and photon condensation, is possible has remained a long-standing and controversial question. Such phenomena have been proposed to arise in exotic electronic systems hosting Dirac and Kane fermions, owing to the formal absence of an $A^2$ term in their low-energy Hamiltonian. Here we exploit the ultralow effective mass of Kane fermions to realise Landau polaritons in a bulk mercury cadmium telluride layer coupled to a Fabry-Perot resonator. Using thermally tunable carrier density, we continuously tune the coupling from the weak to the deep-strong regime, achieving a record normalised coupling ratio exceeding 1.6 above room temperature. The measured polariton spectra are in excellent agreement with a rigorous, gauge-invariant microscopic theory. Despite the nonlinear Landau level structure of relativistic Kane fermions, we show that a diamagnetic $A^2$ term naturally emerges and precludes a superradiant phase transition. These results resolve the long-standing controversy surrounding cavity quantum electrodynamics of relativistic-like matter systems, extend deep-strong-coupling physics to Kane fermions, and open new opportunities for polaritonic semiconductor devices operating in extreme light-matter coupling regimes.