First Principles Calculation of the Topological Phases of the Photonic Haldane Model

Abstract

Photonic topological materials with a broken time-reversal symmetry are characterized by nontrivial topological phases, such that they do not support propagation in the bulk region but forcibly support a nontrivial net number of unidirectional edge-states when enclosed by an opaque-type boundary, e.g., an electric wall. The Haldane model played a central role in the development of topological methods in condensed-matter systems, as it unveiled that a broken time-reversal symmetry is the essential ingredient to have a quantized electronic Hall phase. Recently, it was proved that the magnetic field of the Haldane model can be imitated in photonics with a spatially varying pseudo-Tellegen coupling. Here, we use Green’s function method to determine from “first principles” the band diagram and the topological invariants of the photonic Haldane model, implemented as a Tellegen photonic crystal. Furthermore, the topological phase diagram of the system is found, and it is shown with first principles calculations that the granular structure of the photonic crystal can create nontrivial phase transitions controlled by the amplitude of the pseudo-Tellegen parameter.