Kirigami-actuated reconfigurable topological photonic crystals.
9 affiliations
- 1School of Physics & State Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Materials and Technologies, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
- 2International Institute for Intelligent Nanorobots and Nanosystems & State Key Laboratory of Surface Physics, College of Intelligent Robotics and Advanced Manufacturing, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
- 3Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Extreme Environment Functional Materials, Yiwu Research Institute of Fudan University, Yiwu, China.
- 4International Institute for Intelligent Nanorobots and Nanosystems & State Key Laboratory of Surface Physics, College of Intelligent Robotics and Advanced Manufacturing, Fudan University, Shanghai, China. [email protected].
- 5Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Extreme Environment Functional Materials, Yiwu Research Institute of Fudan University, Yiwu, China. [email protected].
- 6International Institute for Intelligent Nanorobots and Nanosystems & State Key Laboratory of Surface Physics, College of Intelligent Robotics and Advanced Manufacturing, Fudan University, Shanghai, China. [email protected].
- 7Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Extreme Environment Functional Materials, Yiwu Research Institute of Fudan University, Yiwu, China. [email protected].
- 8School of Physics & State Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Materials and Technologies, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China. [email protected].
- 9School of Physics & State Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Materials and Technologies, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China. [email protected].
Abstract
Photonic crystals are typically fabricated with a fixed topology, freezing their edge and corner states in space and frequency. Here we introduce a kirigami-actuated reconfigurable topological photonic crystal in which a single in-plane rotation reshapes the unit cell, drives a bandgap closure and reopening, and thereby relocates the Wannier center and switches the associated Zak phase-the topological invariant that determines whether boundary states appear. We engineer a symmetry-preserving square-lattice deformation path that programs the intracell rod configuration into a compact, discrete topological phase library. Using this library, we demonstrate reconfigurable control of topological modes in both resonance frequency and spatial localization from the same mechanical degree of freedom. A higher-order corner mode is switched between two distinct resonance frequencies while its localization moves between different geometric corners. Meanwhile, at a fixed operating frequency, the propagation path of reciprocal crystalline-symmetry-protected edge modes is mechanically rewritten, enabling on/off gating and two-path beam routing. These results establish a route toward reconfigurable topological photonic devices, showing that quantized band topology can be encoded and switched by shape.
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BibTeX
@article{liu2026kirigamiactuated,
title = {{Kirigami-actuated reconfigurable topological photonic crystals.}},
author = {Mo-Dian Liu and Guobang Jiang and Jizhai Cui and Yongfeng Mei and Xiao-Dong Chen and Jian-Wen Dong},
journal = {Nature communications},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1038/s41467-026-77880-8},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42901923},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Kirigami-actuated reconfigurable topological photonic crystals.
AU - Mo-Dian Liu
AU - Guobang Jiang
AU - Jizhai Cui
AU - Yongfeng Mei
AU - Xiao-Dong Chen
AU - Jian-Wen Dong
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/19
JO - Nature communications
DO - 10.1038/s41467-026-77880-8
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42901923
AB - Photonic crystals are typically fabricated with a fixed topology, freezing their edge and corner states in space and frequency. Here we introduce a kirigami-actuated reconfigurable topological photonic crystal in which a single in-plane rotation reshapes the unit cell, drives a bandgap closure and reopening, and thereby relocates the Wannier center and switches the associated Zak phase-the topological invariant that determines whether boundary states appear. We engineer a symmetry-preserving square-lattice deformation path that programs the intracell rod configuration into a compact, discrete topological phase library. Using this library, we demonstrate reconfigurable control of topological modes in both resonance frequency and spatial localization from the same mechanical degree of freedom. A higher-order corner mode is switched between two distinct resonance frequencies while its localization moves between different geometric corners. Meanwhile, at a fixed operating frequency, the propagation path of reciprocal crystalline-symmetry-protected edge modes is mechanically rewritten, enabling on/off gating and two-path beam routing. These results establish a route toward reconfigurable topological photonic devices, showing that quantized band topology can be encoded and switched by shape.
SN - 2041-1723
ER -