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Published on: November 16, 2019
On-chip nanophotonic topological rainbow.
Cuicui Lu1,2, Yi-Zhi Sun3, Chenyang Wang4
1Key Laboratory of Advanced Optoelectronic Quantum Architecture and Measurements of Ministry of Education, Beijing Key Laboratory of Nanophotonics and Ultrafine Optoelectronic Systems, School of Physics, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, 100081, China. cuicuilu@bit.edu.cn.
Researchers demonstrate a topological rainbow on nanophotonic chips, separating and trapping light by frequency. This robust platform enhances information processing for future silicon photonics.
Area of Science:
- Photonics
- Topological Materials
- Nanotechnology
Background:
- Big Data necessitates nanophotonic chips with high information processing capacity.
- On-chip nanophotonic devices with multiple frequencies are crucial for dense integration but are sensitive to nanoscale imperfections.
- Topological photonics offers a robust solution for next-generation nanophotonic chips.
Purpose of the Study:
- To experimentally realize an on-chip nanophotonic topological rainbow using a synthetic dimension.
- To demonstrate the capability of separating, slowing, and trapping topological photonic states based on frequency.
- To validate the robustness and on-chip integration potential of topological photonics.
Main Methods:
- Utilizing translational deformation freedom as a synthetic dimension to create the topological rainbow.
- Employing a high-resolution scattering scanning near-field optical microscope for direct measurement.
- Fabricating silicon-based photonic chips for on-chip demonstration.
Main Results:
- Successfully demonstrated an on-chip nanophotonic topological rainbow effect.
- Observed separation, slowing, and trapping of different frequency topological photonic states.
- Verified the device's performance using high-resolution microscopy.
Conclusions:
- The developed topological rainbow is versatile, with no restrictions on optical lattice types, symmetries, materials, or wavelength bands.
- The approach is easily integrated onto silicon chips, bridging silicon chip technology and topological photonics.
- This work paves the way for robust, high-capacity nanophotonic information processing.
