No Arabic abstract
We realize fractal-like photonic lattices using cw-laser-writing technique, thereby observe distinct compact localized states (CLSs) associated with different flatbands in the same lattice setting. Such triangle-shaped lattices, akin to the first generation Sierpinski lattices, possess a band structure where singular non-degenerate and nonsingular degenerate flatbands coexist. By proper phase modulation of an input excitation beam, we demonstrate experimentally not only the simplest CLSs but also their superimposition into other complex mode structures. Furthermore, we show by numerical simulation a dynamical oscillation of the flatband states due to beating of the CLSs that have different eigenenergies. These results may provide inspiration for exploring fundamental phenomena arising from fractal structure, flatband singularity, and real-space topology.
We establish experimentally a photonic super-honeycomb lattice (sHCL) by use of a cw-laser writing technique, and thereby demonstrate two distinct flatband line states that manifest as noncontractible-loop-states in an infinite flatband lattice. These localized states (straight and zigzag lines) observed in the sHCL with tailored boundaries cannot be obtained by superposition of conventional compact localized states because they represent a new topological entity in flatband systems. In fact, the zigzag-line states, unique to the sHCL, are in contradistinction with those previously observed in the Kagome and Lieb lattices. Their momentum-space spectrum emerges in the high-order Brillouin zone where the flat band touches the dispersive bands, revealing the characteristic of topologically protected bandcrossing. Our experimental results are corroborated by numerical simulations based on the coupled mode theory. This work may provide insight to Dirac like 2D materials beyond graphene.
We analyze the transport of light in the bulk and at the edge of photonic Lieb lattices, whose unique feature is the existence of a flat band representing stationary states in the middle of the band structure that can form localized bulk states. We find that transport in bulk Lieb lattices is significantly affected by the particular excitation site within the unit cell, due to overlap with the flat band states. Additionally, we demonstrate the existence of new edge states in anisotropic Lieb lattices. These states arise due to a virtual defect at the lattice edges and are not described by the standard tight-binding model.
Topological invariants characterising filled Bloch bands attract enormous interest, underpinning electronic topological insulators and analogous artificial lattices for Bose-Einstein condensates, photons, and acoustic waves. In the latter bosonic systems there is no Fermi exclusion principle to enforce uniform band filling, which makes measurement of their bulk topological invariants challenging. Here we show how to achieve controllable filling of bosonic bands using leaky photonic lattices. Leaky photonic lattices host transitions between bound and radiative modes at a critical energy, which plays a role analogous to the electronic Fermi level. Tuning this effective Fermi level into a band gap results in disorder-robust dynamical quantization of bulk topological invariants such as the Chern number. Our findings establish leaky lattices as a novel and highly flexible platform for exploring topological and non-Hermitian wave physics.
We experimentally study a Stub photonic lattice and excite their localized linear states originated from an isolated Flat Band at the center of the linear spectrum. By exciting these modes in different regions of the lattice, we observe that they do not diffract across the system and remain well trapped after propagating along the crystal. By using their wave nature, we are able to combine -- in phase and out of phase -- two neighbor states into a coherent superposition. These observations allow us to propose a novel setup for performing three different all-optical logical operations such as OR, AND, and XOR, positioning Flat Band systems as key setups to perform concrete applications at any level of power.
We investigate the fate of topological states on fractal lattices. Focusing on a spinless chiral p-wave paired superconductor, we find that this model supports two qualitatively distinct phases when defined on a Sierpinski gasket. While the trivial phase is characterized by a self-similar spectrum with infinitely many gaps and extended eigenstates, the novel topological phase has a gapless spectrum and hosts chiral states propagating along edges of the graph. Besides employing theoretical probes such as the real-space Chern number, inverse participation ratio, and energy-level statistics in the presence of disorder, we develop a simple physical picture capturing the essential features of the model on the gasket. Extending this picture to other fractal lattices and topological states, we show that the p+ip state admits a gapped topological phase on the Sierpinski carpet and that a higher-order topological insulator placed on this lattice hosts gapless modes localized on corners.