No Arabic abstract
Higher-order topological phase as a generalization of Berry phase attracts an enormous amount of research. The current theoretical models supporting higher-order topological phases, however, cannot give the connection between lower and higher-order topological phases when extending the lattice from lower to higher dimensions. Here, we theoretically propose and experimentally demonstrate a topological corner state constructed from the edge states in one dimensional lattice. The two-dimensional square lattice owns independent spatial modulation of coupling in each direction, and the combination of edge states in each direction come up to the higher-order topological corner state in two-dimensional lattice, revealing the connection of topological phase in lower and higher dimensional lattices. Moreover, the topological corner states in two-dimensional lattice can also be viewed as the dimension-reduction from a four-dimensional topological phase characterized by vector Chern number, considering two modulation phases as synthetic dimensions in Aubry-Andre-Harper model discussed as example here. Our work deeps the understanding to topological phases breaking through the lattice dimension, and provides a promising tool constructing higher topological phases in higher dimensional structures.
Much having explored on two-dimensional higher-order topological superconductors (HOTSCs) hosting Majorana corner modes (MCMs) only, we propose a simple fermionic model based on a three-dimensional topological insulator proximized with $s$-wave superconductor to realize Majorana hinge modes (MHMs) followed by MCMs under the application of appropriate Wilson-Dirac perturbations. We interestingly find that the second-order topological superconductor, hosting MHMs, appear above a threshold value of the first type perturbation while third-order topological superconducting phase, supporting MCMs, immediately arises incorporating infinitesimal perturbation of the second kind. Thus, a hierarchy of HOTSC phases can be realized in a single three-dimensional model. Additionally, the application of bulk magnetic field is found to be instrumental in manipulating the number of MHMs, leaving the number for MCMs unaltered. We analytically understand these above mentioned numerical findings by making resort to the low energy model. We further topologically characterize these phases with a distinct structure of the Wannier spectra. From the practical point of view, we manifest quantized transport signatures of these higher-order modes. Finally, we construct Floquet engineering to generate the ladder of HOTSC phases by kicking the same perturbations as considered in their static counterpart.
Photonic topological states have revolutionized our understanding on the propagation and scattering of light. Recent discovery of higher-order photonic topological insulators opens an emergent horizon for zero-dimensional topological corner states. However, the previous realizations of higher-order photonic topological insulators suffer from either a limited operational frequency range due to the lumped components involved or a bulky structure with a large footprint, which are unfavorable for future integrated photonics. To overcome these limitations, we hereby experimentally demonstrate a planar surface-wave photonic crystal realization of two-dimensional higher-order topological insulators. The surface-wave photonic crystals exhibit a very large bulk bandgap (a bandwidth of 28%) due to multiple Bragg scatterings and host one-dimensional gapped edge states described by massive Dirac equations. The topology of those higher-dimensional photonic bands leads to the emergence of zero-dimensional corner states, which provide a route toward robust cavity modes for scalable, integrated photonic chips and an interface for the control of light-matter interaction.
We demonstrate that the multipoles associated with the density matrix are truly observable quantities that can be unambiguously determined from intensity moments. Given their correct transformation properties, these multipoles are the natural variables to deal with a number of problems in the quantum domain. In the case of polarization, the moments are measured after the light has passed through two quarter-wave plates, one half-wave plate, and a polarizing beam splitter for specific values of the angles of the waveplates. For more general two-mode problems, equivalent measurements can be performed.
Uncertainty lower bounds for parameter estimations associated with a unitary family of mixed-state density matrices are obtained by embedding the space of density matrices in the Hilbert space of square-root density matrices. In the Hilbert-space setup the measure of uncertainty is given by the skew information of the second kind, while the uncertainty lower bound is given by the Wigner-Yanase skew information associated with the conjugate observable. Higher-order corrections to the uncertainty lower bound are determined by higher-order quantum skew moments; expressions for these moments are worked out in closed form.
Three-dimensional topological (crystalline) insulators are materials with an insulating bulk, but conducting surface states which are topologically protected by time-reversal (or spatial) symmetries. Here, we extend the notion of three-dimensional topological insulators to systems that host no gapless surface states, but exhibit topologically protected gapless hinge states. Their topological character is protected by spatio-temporal symmetries, of which we present two cases: (1) Chiral higher-order topological insulators protected by the combination of time-reversal and a four-fold rotation symmetry. Their hinge states are chiral modes and the bulk topology is $mathbb{Z}_2$-classified. (2) Helical higher-order topological insulators protected by time-reversal and mirror symmetries. Their hinge states come in Kramers pairs and the bulk topology is $mathbb{Z}$-classified. We provide the topological invariants for both cases. Furthermore we show that SnTe as well as surface-modified Bi$_2$TeI, BiSe, and BiTe are helical higher-order topological insulators and propose a realistic experimental setup to detect the hinge states.