Direct Observation of Topology from Single-Photon Dynamics

Yao Wang, Yong-Heng Lu, Feng Mei, Jun Gao, Zhan-Ming Li, Hao Tang, Shi-Liang Zhu, Suotang Jia, and Xian-Min Jin
Phys. Rev. Lett. 122, 193903 – Published 16 May 2019
PDFHTMLExport Citation

Abstract

Topology manifesting in many branches of physics deepens our understanding on state of matters. Topological photonics has recently become a rapidly growing field since artificial photonic structures can be well designed and constructed to support topological states, especially a promising large-scale implementation of these states using photonic chips. Meanwhile, due to the inapplicability of Hall conductance to photons, it is still an elusive problem to directly measure the integer topological invariants and topological phase transitions in photonic system. Here, we present a direct observation of topological winding numbers by using bulk-state photon dynamics on a chip. Furthermore, we for the first time experimentally observe the topological phase transition points via single-photon dynamics. The integrated topological structures, direct measurement in the single-photon regime and strong robustness against disorder add the key elements into the toolbox of “quantum topological photonics” and may enable topologically protected quantum information processing in large scale.

  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Received 11 December 2018

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.122.193903

© 2019 American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Atomic, Molecular & OpticalQuantum Information, Science & TechnologyCondensed Matter, Materials & Applied PhysicsGeneral Physics

Authors & Affiliations

Yao Wang1,2, Yong-Heng Lu1,3, Feng Mei4,5,*, Jun Gao1,2, Zhan-Ming Li1,3, Hao Tang1,3, Shi-Liang Zhu6,3, Suotang Jia4,5, and Xian-Min Jin1,3,†

  • 1School of Physics and Astronomy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
  • 2Institute for Quantum Science and Engineering and Department of Physics, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518055, China
  • 3Synergetic Innovation Center of Quantum Information and Quantum Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026, China
  • 4State Key Laboratory of Quantum Optics and Quantum Optics Devices, Institute of Laser Spectroscopy, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, Shanxi 030006, China
  • 5Collaborative Innovation Center of Extreme Optics, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, Shanxi 030006, China
  • 6National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures and School of Physics, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093, China

  • *meifeng@sxu.edu.cn
  • xianmin.jin@sjtu.edu.cn

Article Text (Subscription Required)

Click to Expand

Supplemental Material (Subscription Required)

Click to Expand

References (Subscription Required)

Click to Expand
Issue

Vol. 122, Iss. 19 — 17 May 2019

Reuse & Permissions
Access Options
Author publication services for translation and copyediting assistance advertisement

Authorization Required


×
×

Images

×

Sign up to receive regular email alerts from Physical Review Letters

Log In

Cancel
×

Search


Article Lookup

Paste a citation or DOI

Enter a citation
×