We show that dynamic refractive index modulation provides a route towards non-reciprocal topological photonics. In particular, the phase of the modulation provides an effective gauge field for photons that breaks time-reversal symmetry, and can be used to create a wide range of topological effects, in both real space as well as in spaces that involve a synthetic frequency dimension. These topological effects are pointing to new capabilities for controlling the properties of light.

Date Published: 9 November 2016
PDF: 1 pages
Proc. SPIE 9920, Active Photonic Materials VIII, 99201B (9 November 2016); doi: 10.1117/12.2231359

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 9920:
Active Photonic Materials VIII
Ganapathi S. Subramania; Stavroula Foteinopoulou, Editor(s)