Steady-state superradiance with alkaline-earth-metal atoms

Alkaline-earth-metal-like atoms with ultranarrow transitions open the door to a new regime of cavity quantum electrodynamics. That regime is characterized by a critical photon number that is many orders of magnitude smaller than what can be achieved in conventional systems. We show that it is possible to achieve superradiance in steady state with such systems. We discuss the basic underlying mechanisms as well as the key experimental requirements.