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Highly Localized Plasmonic Jackiw-Rebbi State from a Topological Phase Transition
Ziyi Fu1,2, Cai Luo1, Zhixiang Yu1,2
1Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China.
Nano Letters
|July 6, 2026
Summary
Researchers observed a plasmonic Jackiw-Rebbi (JR) state in a metal-dielectric grating, achieving robust optical states with significantly enhanced confinement. This breakthrough combines topological protection with compact field localization for advanced photonic applications.
Area of Science:
- Topological photonics
- Plasmonics
- Condensed matter physics
Background:
- Topological photonics offers disorder-robust optical states.
- Jackiw-Rebbi (JR) states are zero-mode excitations bound to interfaces.
- Previous realizations in dielectric platforms had extended mode volumes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To experimentally observe a plasmonic JR state.
- To achieve enhanced field confinement in topological states.
- To explore topological band inversion in a 1D metal-dielectric grating.
Main Methods:
- Fabrication of a 1D metal-dielectric grating.
- Inducing topological band inversion by varying a geometric parameter.
- Characterizing the midgap state at the interface between topological phases.
Main Results:
- Experimental observation of a plasmonic JR state.
- A sharp midgap state was localized at the interface.
- Lateral localization length experimentally bounded by <5 μm, simulated ~0.7 μm.
- Enhanced confinement due to flattened plasmonic dispersion.
Conclusions:
- Established a platform for plasmonic JR states.
- Demonstrated combined topological robustness and compact field confinement.
- Potential for novel photonic devices leveraging these properties.
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