Collective excitations, Nambu-Goldstone modes, and instability of inhomogeneous polariton condensates

Abstract

We study nonequilibrium polariton condensates in a harmonic potential trap. After finding the steady-state density and supercurrent distributions of nonequilibrium condensates, we calculate the collective excitations of the system. From collective excitation spectra, we can identify the bifurcation of the stable and unstable modes in terms of the pumping spot size and power. There exist Nambu-Goldstone modes that reveal the pattern of the spontaneous symmetry breaking of the system. Moreover, the unstable mechanism associated with the inward supercurrent flow is characterized by the existence of a supersonic region within the condensate.