Synthetic band-structure engineering in polariton crystals with non-Hermitian topological phases

Nonreciprocal Topological Phonon Transfer Independent of Both Device Mass and Exceptional-Point Encircling Direction

Imposing topological operations encircling an exceptional point (EP) engenders unconventional one-way topological phonon transfer (TPT), strictly depending on the direction of EP-inclusive control loops and inherently limited to the small-mass regime of practical resonators. We here show how to beat these limitations and predict a mass-free unidirectional TPT by combining topological operations with the Fizeau light-dragging effect, which splits countercirculating optical modes. An efficient TPT happens when light enters from one chosen side of the fiber but not from the other, leading to a unique nonreciprocal TPT, independent of the direction of winding around the EP. Unlike previous proposals naturally sensitive to both mass and quality of quantum devices, our approach is almost immune to these factors. Remarkably, its threshold duration of adiabatic control loops for maintaining an optimal TPT can be easily shortened, yielding a top-speed-tunable perfect TPT that has no counterpart in previous demonstrations. The study paves a quite-general route to exploiting profoundly different chiral topological effects, independent of both EP-encircling direction and device mass.

Negative-mass exciton polaritons induced by dissipative light-matter coupling in an atomically thin semiconductor

Dispersion engineering is a powerful and versatile tool that can vary the speed of light signals and induce negative-mass effects in the dynamics of particles and quasiparticles. Here, we show that dissipative coupling between bound electron-hole pairs (excitons) and photons in an optical microcavity can lead to the formation of exciton polaritons with an inverted dispersion of the lower polariton branch and hence, a negative mass. We perform direct measurements of the anomalous dispersion in atomically thin (monolayer) WS₂ crystals embedded in planar microcavities and demonstrate that the propagation direction of the negative-mass polaritons is opposite to their momentum. Our study introduces the concept of non-Hermitian dispersion engineering for exciton polaritons and opens a pathway for realising new phases of quantum matter in a solid state.

Designing non-Hermitian real spectra through electrostatics

Non-hermiticity presents a vast newly opened territory that harbors new physics and applications such as lasing and sensing. However, only non-Hermitian systems with real eigenenergies are stable, and great efforts have been devoted in designing them through enforcing parity-time (PT) symmetry. In this work, we exploit a lesser-known dynamical mechanism for enforcing real-spectra, and develop a comprehensive and versatile approach for designing new classes of parent Hamiltonians with real spectra. Our design approach is based on a new electrostatics analogy for modified non-Hermitian bulk-boundary correspondence, where electrostatic charge corresponds to density of states and electric fields correspond to complex spectral flow. As such, Hamiltonians of any desired spectra and state localization profile can be reverse-engineered, particularly those without any guiding symmetry principles. By recasting the diagonalization of non-Hermitian Hamiltonians as a Poisson boundary value problem, our electrostatics analogy also transcends the gain/loss-induced compounding of floating-point errors in traditional numerical methods, thereby allowing access to far larger system sizes.

Direct measurement of a non-Hermitian topological invariant in a hybrid light-matter system

Topology is central to understanding and engineering materials that display robust physical phenomena immune to imperfections. Different topological phases of matter are characterized by topological invariants. In energy-conserving (Hermitian) systems, these invariants are determined by the winding of eigenstates in momentum space. In non-Hermitian systems, a topological invariant is predicted to emerge from the winding of the complex eigenenergies. Here, we directly measure the non-Hermitian topological invariant arising from exceptional points in the momentum-resolved spectrum of exciton polaritons. These are hybrid light-matter quasiparticles formed by photons strongly coupled to electron-hole pairs (excitons) in a halide perovskite semiconductor at room temperature. We experimentally map out both the real (energy) and imaginary (linewidth) parts of the spectrum near the exceptional points and extract the novel topological invariant—fractional spectral winding. Our work represents an essential step toward realization of non-Hermitian topological phases in a condensed matter system.

Quantum fluids of light in all-optical scatterer lattices

One of the recently established paradigms in condensed matter physics is examining a system's behaviour in artificial potentials, giving insight into phenomena of quantum fluids in hard-to-reach settings. A prominent example is the matter-wave scatterer lattice, where high energy matter waves undergo transmission and reflection through narrow width barriers leading to stringent phase matching conditions with lattice band formation. In contrast to evanescently coupled lattice sites, the realisation of a scatterer lattice for macroscopic matter-wave fluids has remained elusive. Here, we implement a system of exciton-polariton condensates in a non-Hermitian Lieb lattice of scatterer potentials. By fine tuning the lattice parameters, we reveal a nonequilibrium phase transition between distinct regimes of polariton condensation: a scatterer lattice of gain guided polaritons condensing on the lattice potential maxima, and trapped polaritons condensing in the potential minima. Our results pave the way towards unexplored physics of non-Hermitian fluids in non-stationary mixtures of confined and freely expanding waves.

Room-Temperature Topological Polariton Laser in an Organic Lattice

Interacting bosonic particles in artificial lattices have proven to be a powerful tool for the investigation of exotic phases of matter as well as phenomena resulting from nontrivial topology. Exciton-polaritons, bosonic quasi-particles of light and matter, have been shown to combine the on-chip benefits of optical systems with strong interactions, inherited from their matter character. Technologically significant semiconductor platforms strictly require cryogenic temperatures. In this communication, we demonstrate exciton-polariton lasing for topological defects emerging from the imprinted lattice structure at room temperature. We utilize red fluorescent protein derived from DsRed of Discosoma sea anemones, hosting highly stable Frenkel excitons. Using a patterned mirror cavity, we tune the lattice potential landscape of a linear Su-Schrieffer-Heeger chain to design topological defects at domain boundaries and at the edge. We unequivocally demonstrate polariton lasing from these topological defects. This progress has paved the road to interacting boson many-body physics under ambient conditions.

Optical switching of topological phase in a perovskite polariton lattice

Strong light-matter interaction enriches topological photonics by dressing light with matter, which provides the possibility to realize active nonlinear topological devices with immunity to defects. Topological exciton polaritons-half-light, half-matter quasiparticles with giant optical nonlinearity-represent a unique platform for active topological photonics. Previous demonstrations of exciton polariton topological insulators demand cryogenic temperatures, and their topological properties are usually fixed. Here, we experimentally demonstrate a room temperature exciton polariton topological insulator in a perovskite zigzag lattice. Polarization serves as a degree of freedom to switch between distinct topological phases, and the topologically nontrivial polariton edge states persist in the presence of onsite energy perturbations, showing strong immunity to disorder. We further demonstrate exciton polariton condensation into the topological edge states under optical pumping. These results provide an ideal platform for realizing active topological polaritonic devices working at ambient conditions, which can find important applications in topological lasers, optical modulation, and switching.