Phase diagram for condensation of microcavity polaritons: from theory to practice

The first realization of a polariton condensate was recently achieved in a CdTe microcavity [Kasprzak et al., Nature 443, 409 (2006)]. We compare the experimental phase boundaries, for various detunings and cryostat temperatures, with those found theoretically from a model which accounts for features of microcavity polaritons such as reduced dimensionality, internal composite structure, disorder in the quantum wells, polariton-polariton interactions, and finite lifetime.