Optical microcavities are structures that enable confinement of light to microscale volumes. The universal importance of these structures has made them indispensable to a wide range of fields. This important book describes the many applications and the related physics, providing both a review and a tutorial of key subjects by leading researchers from each field. The topics include cavity QED and quantum information, nanophotonics and nanostructure interactions, wavelength switching and modulation in optical communications, optical chaos and biosensors.

This volume begins with a chapter on the role of microcavity modes. It includes additional chapters on areas such as how these microcavity modes affect the spontaneous and stimulated emission rates, enhance nonlinear optical processes, and are used in cavity-QED and chemical physics experiments.