Discovery of a maximally charged Weyl point

Chen，Qiaolu1,2,3; Chen，Fujia1,2,3; Pan，Yuang1,2,3; Cui，Chaoxi4,5; Yan，Qinghui1,2,3; Zhang，Li1,2,3; Gao，Zhen6; Yang，Shengyuan A.7; Yu，Zhi Ming4,5; Chen，Hongsheng1,2,3; Zhang，Baile8,9; Yang，Yihao1,2,3

2022-12-01

10.1038/s41467-022-34978-z

Nature Communications   Impact Factor & Quartile

2041-1723

The hypothetical Weyl particles in high-energy physics have been discovered in three-dimensional crystals as collective quasiparticle excitations near two-fold degenerate Weyl points. Such momentum-space Weyl particles carry quantised chiral charges, which can be measured by counting the number of Fermi arcs emanating from the corresponding Weyl points. It is known that merging unit-charged Weyl particles can create new ones with more charges. However, only very recently has it been realised that there is an upper limit — the maximal charge number that a two-fold Weyl point can host is four — achievable only in crystals without spin-orbit coupling. Here, we report the experimental realisation of such a maximally charged Weyl point in a three-dimensional photonic crystal. The four charges support quadruple-helicoid Fermi arcs, forming an unprecedented topology of two non-contractible loops in the surface Brillouin zone. The helicoid Fermi arcs also exhibit the long-pursued type-II van Hove singularities that can reside at arbitrary momenta. This discovery reveals a type of maximally charged Weyl particles beyond conventional topological particles in crystals.

English

NI Journal Papers

Others

National Outstanding Youth Science Fund Project of National Natural Science Foundation of China[11961141010];National Outstanding Youth Science Fund Project of National Natural Science Foundation of China[61975176];National Outstanding Youth Science Fund Project of National Natural Science Foundation of China[62175215];Ministry of Education - Singapore[MOE2016-T3-1-006];Ministry of Education - Singapore[MOE2019-T2-2-085];National Research Foundation Singapore[NRF-CRP23-2019-0007];

2-s2.0-85142889643

Scopus

1.Interdisciplinary Centre for Quantum Information,State Key Laboratory of Modern Optical Instrumentation,ZJU-Hangzhou Global Scientific and Technological Innovation Centre,Zhejiang University,Hangzhou,310027,China
2.International Joint Innovation Centre,Key Lab. of Advanced Micro/Nano Electronic Devices & Smart Systems of Zhejiang,The Electromagnetics Academy at Zhejiang University,Zhejiang University,Haining,314400,China
3.Jinhua Institute of Zhejiang University,Zhejiang University,Jinhua,321099,China
4.Centre for Quantum Physics,Key Laboratory of Advanced Optoelectronic Quantum Architecture and Measurement (MOE),School of Physics,Beijing Institute of Technology,Beijing,100081,China
5.Beijing Key Laboratory of Nanophotonics and Ultrafine Optoelectronic Systems,School of Physics,Beijing Institute of Technology,Beijing,100081,China
6.Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering,Southern University of Science and Technology,Shenzhen,518055,China
7.Research Laboratory for Quantum Materials,Singapore University of Technology and Design,Singapore,487372,Singapore
8.Division of Physics and Applied Physics,School of Physical and Mathematical Sciences,Nanyang Technological University,Singapore,21 Nanyang Link,637371,Singapore
9.Centre for Disruptive Photonic Technologies,The Photonics Institute,Nanyang Technological University,Singapore,50 Nanyang Avenue,639798,Singapore

Chen，Qiaolu,Chen，Fujia,Pan，Yuang,et al. Discovery of a maximally charged Weyl point[J]. Nature Communications,2022,13(1).

Chen，Qiaolu.,Chen，Fujia.,Pan，Yuang.,Cui，Chaoxi.,Yan，Qinghui.,...&Yang，Yihao.(2022).Discovery of a maximally charged Weyl point.Nature Communications,13(1).

Chen，Qiaolu,et al."Discovery of a maximally charged Weyl point".Nature Communications 13.1(2022).