Experimental Milestones Towards Majorana Braiding with Acoustic Metamaterials

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates the first experimental realization of a Kitaev chain using acoustic metamaterials, showing robust Majorana-like modes and control over their properties, paving the way for topological quantum computing.

Contribution

It introduces a passive multilayer acoustic resonator design that faithfully reproduces the Kitaev chain's topological features and demonstrates control and stability of Majorana-like modes.

Findings

Successful implementation of a Kitaev chain with acoustic resonators

Observation of Majorana-like edge modes localized at domain walls

Control of mode positioning and stability under parameter variations

Abstract

Here we show the first experimental implementation of the fully general Kitaev chain with complex-valued order parameter $\Delta$ and site-varying synthetic chemical potential $\mu$, using a passive multilayer acoustic resonator design and fabrication. Our laboratory model faithfully reproduces the key symmetries and the topological phase diagram of the model, and displays robust Majorana-like edge modes spatially localized at smoothly engineered domain walls and energetically localized in the middle of the bulk spectral gap. We demonstrate precise control over mode positioning through smooth spatial variations of $\mu$, and validate the stability of the modes and of the spectral gap under continuous and complex variations of $\Delta$ -- both critical requirements for topological braiding operations. These results establish and validate the fundamental building blocks for experimental implementation of complete braiding protocols, opening concrete pathways toward accessible non-abelian physics and topologically protected information processing.