Topological phonon transport in an optomechanical system

Light is a powerful tool for controlling mechanical motion, as shown by numerous applications in the field of cavity optomechanics. Recently, small scale optomechanical circuits, connecting a few optical and mechanical modes, have been demonstrated in an ongoing push towards multi-mode on-chip optomechanical systems. An ambitious goal driving this trend is to produce topologically protected phonon transport. Once realized, this will unlock the full toolbox of optomechanics for investigations of topological phononics. Here, we report the realization of topological phonon transport in an optomechanical device. Our experiment is based on an innovative multiscale optomechanical crystal design and allows for site-resolved measurements in an array of more than 800 cavities. The sensitivity inherent in our opto-mechanical read-out allowed us to detect thermal fluctuations traveling along topological edge channels. This represents a major step forward in an ongoing effort to downscale mechanical topological systems.

Hengjiang Ren, Tirth Shah, Hannes Pfeifer, Christian Brendel, Vittorio Peano, Florian Marquardt, Oskar Painter