Abstract:
We have reviewed recent theoretical and experimental research that establishes that pulses can propagate through material systems with superluminal or even negative group velocities. Nonetheless, these exotic propagation effects are fully compatible with established notion of causality. At a fundamental level, the nature of slow and fast light seems fairly well understood. But there still may be some surprises on the horizon.We noted in the body of this chapter that there seems to be no fundamental limit on how much one can delay a light pulse using slow-light methods, and in fact pulse delays as great as 80 pulse lengths have been observed [29]. Conversely, there seem to be severe limitations that limit the amount of advancement for a fast-light system to at most several pulse widths [71].1 But can these limitations be overcome? This is an intriguing question that merits further examination. © 2010 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.
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