Gravitational Redshift and Deflection of Slow Light

ORAL

Abstract

We explore the nature of the classical propagation of light through media with strong frequency-dependent dispersion in the presence of a gravitational field. In the weak field limit, gravity causes a redshift of the optical frequency, which the slow-light medium converts into a spatially-varying index of refraction. This results in the bending of a light ray in the medium. We further propose experimental techniques to amplify and detect the phenomenon using weak value measurements. Independent heuristic and rigorous derivations of this effect are given.

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Authors

  • Justin Dressel

    • University of Rochester
  • S. Rajeev

    • University of Rochester
  • John Howell

    • University of Rochester
  • Andrew Jordan

    • University of Rochester
    • Univ. of Rochester