Effect of mode-mode competition on atom－atom entanglement

A system consisting of two atoms interacting with a two-mode vacuum is considered, where each atom is resonant with the two cavity modes through two different competing transitions. The effect of mode--mode competition on the atom--atom entanglement is investigated. We find that the entanglement between the two atoms can be induced by the mode--mode competition. For the initial atomic state |\varPsi(0)\rangle, whether the atoms are initially separated or entangled, a large or even maximal entanglement between them can be obtained periodically by introducing the mode--mode competition. For the initial atomic state |\varPhi(0)\rangle, the strong mode--mode competition can prevent the two atoms entangled initially from suffering entanglement sudden death; besides, it makes them in a more stable and longer-lived entanglement than in the non-competition case.