Topologically protected elastic waves in phononic metamaterials

Surface waves in topological states of quantum matter exhibit unique protection from backscattering induced by disorders, making them ideal carriers for both classical and quantum information. Topological matters for electrons and photons are largely limited by the range of bulk properties, and the associated performance trade-offs. In contrast, phononic metamaterials provide access to a much wider range of material properties. Here we demonstrate numerically a phononic topological metamaterial in an elastic-wave analogue of the quantum spin Hall effect. A dual-scale phononic crystal slab is used to support two effective spins for phonons over a broad bandwidth, and strong spin-orbit coupling is realized by…

• NS
  National Science Foundation

  Award: 1406235
• DO
  Division of Electrical, Communications and Cyber Systems

  Award: ECCS-1406235