Polariton condensation in a microcavity using a highly-stable molecular dye

We have fabricated dielectric microcavities containing the molecular dye 1,4-bis[2-[4-[N,N-di(p-tolyl)amino]phenyl]vinyl]benzene (DPAVB) dispersed in a transparent polymer matrix. We show that despite the relatively broad absorption linewidth of the DPAVB, the cavities enter the strong coupling regime. We use <330 ps pulses at 355 nm from a Nd:YAG laser to generate amplified spontaneous emission from control films and polariton condensation from the strongly-coupled microcavity in air and at room temperature. Here, polariton condensation is observed at an excitation threshold of 215 μJ cm−2. Significantly, we show that the DPAVB dye has a very high degree of photostability, with polariton condensation still observed from the cavity after 37 000 excitation pulses, showing promise for its use in practical polaritonic devices.