Bright yet dark: how strong coupling quenches exciton-polariton radiation

Understanding the radiative decay of exciton-polaritons is essential for achieving long-lived polaritons – a key prerequisite for enhancing nonlinear and quantum polaritonic effects. However, conventional wisdom – the coupled oscillator model – often oversimplifies polariton radiation as independent emissions from uncoupled excitonic and photonic resonances, overlooking the role of strong exciton-photon coupling in reshaping their radiative behavior. In this work, we present a theoretical framework that goes beyond the conventional coupled oscillator model by fully accounting for the collective and coherent nature of exciton-photon interactions. We demonstrate that these interactions can strongly suppress polariton radiation via destructive interference – both within the excitonic ensemble and between excitonic and photonic radiation channels – giving rise to polaritonic bound states in the continuum with infinitely long radiative lifetimes. Our approach offers a unified description of polariton radiative decay and establishes new design principles for engineering long-lived exciton-polaritons with tailored radiation properties, opening new avenues for nonlinear, topological, and quantum polaritonic applications.