Emerging Multidimensional Real-Space Topological Structures at Chiral Bound States in the Continuum

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Authors: Xingqi Zhao, Jingguang Chen, Jiajun Wang, Lixi Rao, Wenzhe Liu, Fang Guan, C. T. Chan, Lei Shi, Jian Zi
Cited by: 1

Abstract

As widely studied topological singularities, bound states in the continuum (BICs) have revealed rich physical properties through their momentum-space topology. Here, we reveal and experimentally demonstrate that magnetically induced chiral BICs possess multidimensional topological structures extending into real space. We design and realize a gyromagnetic photonic crystal slab where magnetic field breaks the time-reversal symmetry and lifts the degeneracy of BICs, creating a pair of chiral BICs with opposite circular polarizations. Near-field scanning measurements reveal phase vortices with quantized topological charges, spatially distributed near-field chirality, and skyrmionic Stokes textures arising from magnetic control. Our work unveils a previously unexplored dimension of BIC topology and establishes gyromagnetic photonic crystals as versatile platforms for manipulating complex topological states.

Fields of Study & Subjects

Topological Materials and Phenomena Metamaterials and Metasurfaces Applications Orbital Angular Momentum in Optics

Publication details

Journal / source
arXiv (Cornell University)
Publication date
26 February 2026
Document type
Preprint