Experimental Realization of Multiple Topological Edge States in a 1D Photonic Lattice

Zhang, Zhifeng; Teimourpour, Mohammad Hosain; Arkinstall, Jake; Pan, Mingsen; Miao, Pei; Schomerus, Henning; El-Ganainy, Ramy; Feng, Liang

Experimental Realization of Multiple Topological Edge States in a 1D Photonic Lattice

Type

Article

Authors

Zhang, Zhifeng

Teimourpour, Mohammad Hosain
Arkinstall, Jake
Pan, Mingsen
Miao, Pei
Schomerus, Henning
El-Ganainy, Ramy
Feng, Liang

KAUST Grant Number

OSR-2016-CRG5-2950-04

Date

2019-01-03

Abstract

Topological photonic systems offer light transport that is robust against defects and disorder, promising a new generation of chip-scale photonic devices and facilitating energy-efficient on-chip information routing and processing. However, present quasi one dimensional (1D) designs, such as the Su–Schrieffer–Heeger and Rice–Mele models, support only a limited number of nontrivial phases due to restrictions on dispersion band engineering. Here, a flexible topological photonic lattice on a silicon photonic platform is experimentally demonstrated that realizes multiple topologically nontrivial dispersion bands. By suitably setting the couplings between the 1D waveguides, different lattices can exhibit the transition between multiple different topological phases and allow the independent realization of the corresponding edge states. Heterodyne measurements clearly reveal the ultrafast transport dynamics of the edge states in different phases at a femtosecond scale, validating the designed topological features. The study equips topological models with enriched edge dynamics and considerably expands the scope to engineer unique topological features into photonic, acoustic, and atomic systems.

Citation

Zhang, Z., Teimourpour, M. H., Arkinstall, J., Pan, M., Miao, P., Schomerus, H., … Feng, L. (2019). Experimental Realization of Multiple Topological Edge States in a 1D Photonic Lattice. Laser & Photonics Reviews, 13(2), 1800202. doi:10.1002/lpor.201800202

Acknowledgements

Z.Z., M.P., P.M., and L.F. acknowledge support from the Army Research Office Young Investigator Research Program (Grant No. W911NF-16-1-0403) and King Abdullah University of Science & Technology (Grant No. OSR-2016-CRG5-2950-04). This research was partially supported by NSF through the University of Pennsylvania Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC) (DMR-1720530). This work was carried out in part at the Singh Center for Nanotechnology, part of the National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure Program, which is supported by the NSF grant NNCI-1542153. R.E.-G. acknowledge support from the Army Research Office (W911NF-17-1-0481) and the National Science Foundation (Grant No. ECCS-1807552). J.A. and H.S. acknowledge support from EPSRC (Grant No. EP/L01548X/1 and Grant No. EP/N031776/1).