Room temperature electrically pumped topological insulator lasers

Topological insulator lasers (TILs) are a recently introduced family of lasing arrays in which phase locking is achieved through synthetic gauge fields. These single frequency light source arrays operate in the spatially extended edge modes of topologically non-trivial optical lattices. Because of the inherent robustness of topological modes against perturbations and defects, such topological insulator lasers tend to demonstrate higher slope efficiencies as compared to their topologically trivial counterparts. So far, magnetic and non-magnetic optically pumped topological laser arrays as well as electrically pumped TILs that are operating at cryogenic temperatures have been demonstrated. Here we present the first room temperature and electrically pumped topological insulator laser. This laser array, using a structure that mimics the quantum spin Hall effect for photons, generates light at telecom wavelengths and exhibits single frequency emission. Our work is expected to lead to further developments in laser science and technology, while opening up new possibilities in topological photonics. Topological insulator lasers offer robustness and efficiency due to their unique properties but usually require cryogenic temperatures or optical pumping. Here the authors demonstrate an electrically pumped topological insulator laser operating at room temperature.

Automated summary

Topological insulator lasers demonstrate higher efficiency and robustness due to their unique properties, with the first room temperature and electrically pumped TIL being presented in this study. While previous TILs required cryogenic temperatures or optical pumping, this new development opens up possibilities for practical applications in laser technology.