We report the direct observation of the nonreciprocity of the velocity of light, induced by electric and magnetic fields. This bilinear magneto-electro-optical effect appears in crossed electric and magnetic fields perpendicular to the light wave vector, as a refractive index difference between two counterpropagating directions. Using a high finesse ring cavity, we have measured this magnetoelectric nonreciprocity in molecular nitrogen at ambient temperature and atmospheric pressure ; for light polarized parallel to the magnetic field it is 2η∥exp(N2)=(4.7±1)×10-23 m V-1 T-1 for λ=1064 nm, in agreement with the expected order of magnitude. Our measurement opens the way to a deeper insight into light-matter interaction beyond the electric dipole approximation. We were able to measure a nonreciprocity as small as Δn=(5±2)×10-18, which makes its observation in quantum vacuum a conceivable challenge.
Voir en ligne : Phys. Rev. Lett. 106, 193003 (2011)