Magnetic modulation of topological polarization singularities in momentum space

Abstract

The polarization singularities in momentum space, rather than in real space, are capturing interest for active singular optics with exotic light scattering and various topological phenomena, which have potential applications in vortex nano-lasers, valley exciton emission, and others. Here, we propose to magnetically control the polarization singularities in momentum space in the photonic crystal slabs with inversion spatial symmetry (P symmetry). A pair of C points (circular polarization points) with the same topological charge is spawned from a V point (polarization vortex center), and they can be dynamically shifted in momentum space with the variation of the magnetic field. Moreover, the coupling between transverse electric (TE) and transverse magnetic (TM) modes induced by the magnetic field gives rise to a hybrid mode, which can close certain leaky channels to achieve an accidental V point. Such active manipulation of polarization singularities with magnetic field is promised for various applications in light–matter interactions and reveals novel phenomena and physics in singular optics and topological photonics.