Spin-momentum locked interface modes based on transverse resonance and Zak phase in finite thickness dielectric slabs

Abstract

The field of topological photonics has made great strides in the past decade with many new designs based on bandgap and band inversion structures that provide robust, unidirectional, and reflection-free propagation of energy. The topological invariant or Chern number of a metamaterial guarantees the existence of topologically protected edge modes. However, its mathematical application to real systems is not always straightforward and can be greatly simplified by reducing the dimensional complexity of the problem by the calculation of a Zak phase that determines the topological phase in just one dimension. This work explores two methods of creating interface modes with finite height dielectric slabs: (1) transverse resonance through variable edge truncation of a photonic crystal (PhC) or cell sliding and (2) a uni-axial topological phase by means of scaling the internal features of a unit cell. The proposed metamaterial devices use the same C4v symmetric unit cell structure on both sides of the interface and are finite in all three dimensions, allowing for easy fabrication, excitation, and implementation in real-world applications. The all-dielectric design also enables an easy transition to and from conventional PhC waveguides and lends itself well to operation in frequencies spanning across the microwave and optical spectrum without concerns of additional metallic losses in the THz region.