Flexible light manipulation in non-Hermitian frequency Su-Schrieffer-Heeger lattice

Direct extraction of topological Zak phase with the synthetic dimension

Measuring topological invariants is an essential task in characterizing topological phases of matter. They are usually obtained from the number of edge states due to the bulk-edge correspondence or from interference since they are integrals of the geometric phases in the energy band. It is commonly believed that the bulk band structures could not be directly used to obtain the topological invariants. Here, we implement the experimental extraction of Zak phase from the bulk band structures of a Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) model in the synthetic frequency dimension. Such synthetic SSH lattices are constructed in the frequency axis of light, by controlling the coupling strengths between the symmetric and antisymmetric supermodes of two bichromatically driven rings. We measure the transmission spectra and obtain the projection of the time-resolved band structure on lattice sites, where a strong contrast between the non-trivial and trivial topological phases is observed. The topological Zak phase is naturally encoded in the bulk band structures of the synthetic SSH lattices, which can hence be experimentally extracted from the transmission spectra in a fiber-based modulated ring platform using a laser with telecom wavelength. Our method of extracting topological phases from the bulk band structure can be further extended to characterize topological invariants in higher dimensions, while the exhibited trivial and non-trivial transmission spectra from the topological transition may find future applications in optical communications.

Non-Hermitian kagome photonic crystal with a totally topological spatial mode selection

Recently, the study of non-Hermitian topological edge and corner states in sonic crystals (SCs) and photonic crystals (PCs) has drawn much attention. In this paper, we propose a Wannier-type higher-order topological insulator (HOTI) model based on the kagome PC containing dimer units and study its non-Hermitian topological corner states. When balanced gain and loss are introduced into the dimer units with a proper parity-time symmetric setting, the system will show asymmetric Wannier bands and can support two Hermitian corner states and two pairs of complex-conjugate or pseudo complex-conjugate non-Hermitian corner states. These topological corner states are solely confined at three corners of the triangular supercell constructed by the trivial and non-trivial kagome PCs, corresponding to a topological spatial mode selection effect. As compared to the non-Hermitian quadrupole-type HOTIs, the non-Hermitian Wannier-type HOTIs can realize totally topological spatial mode selection by using much lower coefficients of gain and loss. Our results pave the way for the development of novel non-Hermitian photonic topological devices based on Wannier-type HOTIs.

Topological polarization selection concentrator

Topological polarization selection devices, which can separate topological photonic states of different polarizations into different positions, play a key role in the field of integrated photonics. However, there has been no effective method to realize such devices to date. Here, we have realized a topological polarization selection concentrator based on synthetic dimensions. The topological edge states of double polarization modes are constructed by introducing lattice translation as a synthetic dimension in a completed photonic bandgap photonic crystal with both TE and TM modes. The proposed device can work on multiple frequencies and is robust against disorders. This work provides a new,to the best of our knowledge, scheme to realize topological polarization selection devices, and it will enable practical applications such as topological polarization routers, optical storage, and optical buffers.

Optomechanically induced transparency and directional amplification in a non-Hermitian optomechanical lattice

In this paper, we propose a 1-dimensional optomechanical lattice which possesses non-Hermitian property due to its nonreciprocal couplings. We calculated the energy spectrum under periodical boundary condition and open boundary condition, respectively. To investigate the transmission property of the system, we calculate the Green function of the system using non-Bloch band theory. By analyzing the Green function and the periodical boundary condition results, we studied the directional amplification of the system and found the frequency that supports the amplification. By adding probe laser on one site and detect the output of the same site, we found that optomechanically induced transparency (OMIT) can be achieved in our system. Different from the traditional OMIT spectrum, quantum interference due to a large number of modes can be observed in our system. When varying the nonreciprocal and other parameters of the system, the OMIT peak can be effectively modulated or even turned into optomechanically induced amplification. Our system is very promising to act as a one-way signal filter. Our model can also be extended to other non-Hermitian optical systems which may possess topological features and bipolar non-Hermitian skin effect.

Observation of the topological phase transition from the spatial correlation of a biphoton in a one-dimensional topological photonic waveguide array

We propose a simple method, using the first singular value (FSV) of the spatial correlation of biphotons, to characterize topological phase transitions (TPTs) in one-dimensional (1D) topological photonic waveguide arrays (PWAs). After analyzing the spatial correlation of biphotons using the singular value decomposition, we found that the FSV of the spatial correlation of biphotons in real space can characterize TPTs and distinguish between the topological trivial and nontrivial phases in PWAs based on the Su-Schrieffer-Heeger model. The analytical simulation results were demonstrated by applying the coupled-mode theory to biphotons and were found to be in good agreement with those of the numerical simulation. Moreover, the numerical simulation of the FSV (of the spatial correlation of biphotons) successfully characterized the TPT in a PWA based on the Aubry-André-Harper and Rice-Mele models, demonstrating the universality of this method for 1D topological PWAs. Our method provides biphotons with the possibility of acquiring information regarding TPTs directly from the spatial correlation in real space, and their potential applications in quantum topological photonics and topological quantum computing as quantum simulators and information carriers.

Chiral Zener tunneling in non-Hermitian frequency lattices

A waveguide coupler under both phase and intensity modulation is proposed to generate a non-Hermitian Su-Schrieffer-Heeger lattice in frequency dimension. By varying the modulation period and phase, we can manipulate the on-site potential of the lattice and realize anisotropic coupling of the supermodes in waveguides. The artificial electric field associated with the modulation phase can also be introduced simultaneously. Zener tunneling is demonstrated in the non-Hermitian system and manifests an irreversibly unidirectional conversion between odd and even supermodes. The conversion efficiency can be optimized by varying the on-site potential of the waveguides. The study provides a versatile platform to explore non-Hermitian multiband physics in synthetic dimensions, which may find great application in chiral mode converters and couplers.

Stabilized Dirac points in one-dimensional non-Hermitian optical lattices

We demonstrate stable Dirac points (DPs) in low dimensions by taking advantage of non-Hermiticity in an optical lattice composed of two coupled Su-Schrieffer-Heeger chains. The occurrence of DPs stems from the constraints of pseudo-Hermiticity and charge-conjugation parity symmetry, which force the system to support both real bands and orthogonal eigenmodes despite its non-Hermitian nature. The two characteristics hold even at spectral degeneracies of zero energy, giving rise to non-Hermitian DPs. We show that DPs are stable with the variation of dissipation since they are topological charges and can develop into nodal rings in two dimensions. Moreover, we investigate the beam dynamics around DPs and observe beam splitting with stable power evolution. The study paves the way for controlling the flow of light to aid dissipation together with high stability of energy.