Observation of edge solitons and transitions between them in a trimer circuit lattice

Abstract

Abstract In nonlinear topological systems, edge solitons either originate from linear topological edge modes or emerge as nonlinearity-induced localized states without topological protection. While electric circuits (ECs) provide a platform for realizing various types of topological insulators, observation of edge solitons and transitions between them in EC lattices remains a challenging problem. Here, we realize quench dynamics in nonlinear ECs to experimentally demonstrate both topologically nontrivial and trivial edge solitons in a trimer EC lattice and transitions between them. In the weakly nonlinear regime, we observe two types of topologically nontrivial edge solitons that originate from the corresponding linear topological edge states, characterized by the presence of mutually antisymmetric or symmetric peaks at two edge sites. Under strong nonlinearity, topologically trivial edge solitons with antisymmetric, symmetric, and asymmetric internal structures are discovered. The work suggests possibilities for exploring sophisticated nonlinear states and transitions between them in nonlinear topological systems.