Dicke phase transition with multiple superradiant states in quantum chaotic resonators

We experimentally investigate the Dicke phase transition in chaotic optical resonators realized with two-dimensional photonics crystals. This setup circumvents the constraints of the system originally investigated by Dicke and allows a detailed study of the various properties of the superradiant transition. Our experimental results, analytical prediction, and numerical modeling based on random-matrix theory demonstrate that the probability density P? of the resonance widths provides a new criterion to test the occurrence of the Dicke transition.