Polarization-Controlled Strong Light–Matter Interaction With Templated Molecular Aggregates

Strong light-matter interaction is demonstrated for a layer of templated merocyanine molecules in a planar microcavity. Using a single layer of graphene nanoribbons as a templating layer, an aligned layer of aggregated molecules is obtained. The molecular layer displays anisotropic optical properties resembling those of a biaxial crystal. The anisotropic excitonic component in the cavity results in strongly polarization-dependent light-matter interaction and in increased Rabi-energies. The increased light-matter interaction is possibly due to reduced molecular disorder in the templated molecular layer. This conclusion is supported by an analysis based on a multi-oscillator model. Photoluminescence microspectroscopy is further used to demonstrate that the light-matter coupling is spatially homogeneous. This study introduces molecular templating to strong light-matter studies. The reduced disorder of the system as a consequence of templating is highly beneficial for engineering light-matter interaction.