• Photonics Research
  • Vol. 11, Issue 3, 476 (2023)
Xiaoxian He1, Xiangru Wang1、*, Yulin Zhao2, Rusheng Zhuo1, and Feng Liang2
Author Affiliations
  • 1School of Optoelectronic Science and Engineering, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 610054, China
  • 2School of Physics, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 610054, China
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    DOI: 10.1364/PRJ.482956 Cite this Article Set citation alerts
    Xiaoxian He, Xiangru Wang, Yulin Zhao, Rusheng Zhuo, Feng Liang. Field programmable topological edge array[J]. Photonics Research, 2023, 11(3): 476 Copy Citation Text show less

    Abstract

    Valley Hall topological photonic crystals, inspired by topological insulators in condensed matter physics, have provided a promising solution to control the flow of light. Recently, the dynamic manipulation property of topological photonic crystals has been widely studied. Here, we propose a novel solution for programmable valley photonic crystals, called field programmable topological edge array (FPTEA), based on the field reorientation property of nematic liquid crystals and robust valley-protected edge modes. FPTEA is composed of an array of graphene-like lattices with C3 symmetry, in which the birefringence of liquid crystal is larger than 0.5105. Due to the dielectric anisotropy of liquid crystals being sensitive to external fields such as light, heat, electric, and magnetic fields, each lattice is tunable, and the topological propagation routes and even the lattice parameters can be dynamically changed while changing the distribution of external fields. We numerically demonstrate three methods of composing an FPTEA device to design arbitrary passive optical devices by electric driving, thermal inducing, or UV writing. These results show the great application potential of liquid crystals in topological photonic crystals, and enrich the design of programmable integrated topological devices with broad working bandwidth ranging from microwave to visible light.
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    Xiaoxian He, Xiangru Wang, Yulin Zhao, Rusheng Zhuo, Feng Liang. Field programmable topological edge array[J]. Photonics Research, 2023, 11(3): 476
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