Overview

Bose-Einstein condensation of excitons is a unique effect in which the electronic states of a solid can self-organize to acquire quantum phase coherence. The phenomenon is closely linked to Bose-Einstein condensation in other systems such as liquid helium and laser-cooled atomic gases. Covering theoretical aspects as well as recent experimental work, the book provides a comprehensive survey of the field. After introducing the relevant basic physics of excitons, the authors discuss exciton-phonon interactions as well as the behavior of biexcitons. They also cover exciton phase-transitions and give particular attention to nonlinear optical effects including the optical Stark effect and chaos in excitonic systems. The thermodynamics of equilibrium, quasiequilibrium, and nonequilibrium systems are examined in detail. Throughout, the authors interweave theoretical and experimental results. The book will be of great interest to graduate students and researchers in semiconductor and superconductor physics, quantum optics, and atomic physics.