Gapless unidirectional photonic transport using all-dielectric kagome lattices

Abstract

Photonic topological insulators are a promising photonic platform due to the possibility of unidirectional edge states with insensitivity to bending, fabrication imperfections, or environmental fluctuation. Here we demonstrate highly efficient unidirectional photonic edge mode propagation facilitated by an optical analog of the quantum valley Hall effect. With an all-dielectric kagome lattice design, we demonstrate broadband suppressed reflection in the presence of sharp corners and further show negligible vertical losses in a semiconductor-based device at telecommunication wavelengths.