SUPERFLUORESCENCE IN A CONTINUOUSLY PUMPED MEDIUM

Numerical simulations of an extended sample of three-level atoms with slow dipole dephasing exhibit a superfluorescent pulse shortly after i ncoherent pumping begins. The operator Maxwell-Bloch equations are sim ulated by classical Langevin equations. The counterpropagating fields are solved for in the (one-dimensional) limit of the Fresnel number ne ar unity, with open-end boundary conditions. An initial, ''quiet'' bui ldup of the inversion is followed by superfluorescence. Oscillation of the populations, coherences, and fields is observed. The superfluores cence delay time is compared with analytical predictions made in the l inear regime. A transition to amplified spontaneous emission is found as the pump rate is decreased.