Topological valleytronics: Brought to light

TL;DR

This paper discusses the experimental observation of the topological valley Hall effect in photonic crystals, highlighting its potential for classical and quantum information applications and demonstrating the universality of symmetry-protected band topology.

Contribution

It reports the first observation of the topological valley Hall effect in photonic systems, bridging classical and quantum topological phenomena.

Findings

Observation of counterflow in opposite valleys

Valley as a carrier of information and energy

Universality of symmetry-protected band topology

Abstract

The topological valley Hall effect was predicted as a consequence of the bulk topology of electronic systems. Now it has been observed in photonic crystals, showing that both topology and valley are innate to classical as well as quantum systems. The discovery of counterflow in opposite valleys not only demonstrates that the valley can be a novel carrier of information and energy --- particularly valuable for systems without charge and spin --- but also exemplifies that symmetry-protected band topology can be universal to both quantum and classical systems.