CAREER: Topological Engineering for Active Photonic Structures and Devices

光子学在新的信息处理、高速计算和通信系统的交换和路由方面取得了重要的技术突破。基于光学增益材料（例如激光器和放大器）的有源光子结构是光子应用中其他无源组件的关键驱动因素。为了进一步推进现代信息系统，有必要采用新的方法来实现独特的有源光子功能。在这个项目中，PI将利用最先进的集成光子技术开发一个颠覆性的拓扑光子平台。光传播的新型拓扑工程提供了一个前所未有的视角，以进一步扩展有源光子结构的设计方法，使广泛的应用在光通信和计算。这项研究与现有的教育活动紧密结合，刺激本科生和研究生追求工程事业，让他们接触到积极的纳米光子器件的令人兴奋的发展，解决光学计算，通信和网络中的重要社会问题。教育推广活动也将提供，以促进K-12学生的兴趣和参与，并扩大代表性不足的群体的参与。技术说明：PI将通过拓扑方式的光学增益和损耗的战略配置来开发颠覆性的有源光子技术。这可以为现代光子应用提供各种前所未有的自由度，从而彻底改变下一代基于光子学的信息系统，推进片上光交换，路由，激光和分复用。与光学增益/损耗相耦合，光子器件的主动控制拓扑结构以灵活和可重构的方式提供鲁棒的光路由。还在研究中的是如何主动光学增益/损耗操纵可以战略性地控制，以创建一类新的双折射测量拓扑光子激光器，其中可以方便地切换激光振荡的手性，以更好地控制拓扑光子路由。将进行基于创新狄拉克形式主义的探索性光子研究，以创建一个更通用的拓扑光子平台，特别是以灵活的方式创建和添加拓扑模式，该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过利用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的知识价值进行评估，被认为值得支持。影响审查标准。

Photonics has yielded important technological breakthroughs in novel information processing, switching and routing for high-speed computing and communication systems. Active photonic structures built upon optical gain materials (e.g. lasers and amplifiers) are the key drivers over other passive components in photonic applications. Novel approaches towards unique active photonic functionalities become necessary to further advance modern information systems. In this project, the PI will leverage the state-of-the-art integrated photonics technology to develop a disruptive topological photonic platform. The novel topological engineering of light propagation offers an unprecedented perspective to further expand the design methodology of active photonic structures, enabling a wide range of applications in optical communication and computing. This research is closely integrated with the existing educational activities, stimulating undergraduate and graduate students to pursue engineering career by exposing them to the exciting development of active nanophotonic devices solving important societal problems in optical computing, communication, and networking. The educational outreach activities will also be provided to promote the interests and participations of K-12 students and broaden the participations from underrepresented groups. Technical description: The PI will develop disruptive active photonic technologies via strategic configurations of optical gain and loss in a topological manner. This can deliver a great variety of unprecedented freedoms in manipulating light for modern photonic applications and thus revolutionizing next generation of photonics-based information systems, advancing on-chip optical switching, routing, lasing, and division multiplexing. Coupled with optical gain/loss, the actively controlled topology of the photonic devices offers robust light routing in a flexible and reconfigurable manner. Also under investigation is how active optical gain/loss manipulation can be strategically controlled to create a new class of imaginary-gauged topological photonic lasers, where the chirality of laser oscillation can be conveniently switched to better control the topological photonic routing. Exploratory photonic research based on an innovative Dirac formalism will be conducted to create a more versatile topological photonic platform for, in particular, topological mode creation and addition in a flexible manner, which will enable robust mode division multiplexing to increase information capacity.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.