Optomechanically-induced transparency (OMIT) and the associated slow-light propagation provide the basis for storing photons in nanofabricated phononic devices. Here we study OMIT in parity-time (PT)-symmetric microresonators with a tunable gain-to-loss ratio. This system features a reversed, non-amplifying transparency: inverted-OMIT. When the gain-to-loss ratio is steered, the system exhibits a transition from the PT-symmetric phase to the broken-PT-symmetric phase. We show that by tuning the pump power at fixed gain-to-loss ratio or the gain-to-loss ratio at fixed pump power, one can switch from slow to fast light and vice versa. Moreover, the presence of PT-phase transition results in the reversal of the pump and gain dependence of transmission rates. These features provide new tools for controlling light propagation using optomechanical devices.

http://arxiv.org/abs/1411.7115
Quantum Physics (quant-ph); Optics (physics.optics)