Reconfigurable non-Abelian integrated photonics

Shijie Sun, Xibin Wang (), Shangrong Li, Daming Zhang, Qi-Dai Chen and Xu-Lin Zhang ()
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Shijie Sun: Jilin University
Xibin Wang: Jilin University
Shangrong Li: Jilin University
Daming Zhang: Jilin University
Qi-Dai Chen: Jilin University
Xu-Lin Zhang: Jilin University

Nature Communications, 2025, vol. 16, issue 1, 1-9

Abstract: Abstract Current integrated photonics typically utilizes the dynamical phase associated resonant on-chip components, leading to bandwidth-limited devices with perturbation-sensitive performance. Multi-mode geometric phase matrix, arising from the non-Abelian holonomy which is a non-resonant and global effect, has been recently introduced to integrated photonics for the design of broadband and robust on-chip photonic devices. Achieving reconfigurable on-chip non-Abelian photonic devices is a crucial step towards practical applications, which however remains elusive. Here, we propose a universal approach by employing the thermo-optic effect to tune the system’s Hamiltonian and thus the holonomy induced geometric phase matrix. We implement this concept in double-layered polymer integrated platforms, experimentally demonstrating a four-mode non-Abelian braiding device comprising six sets of tunable two-mode braiding building blocks. Through modulations, the device can be reconfigured to generate up to 24 unitary matrices belonging to the braid group B4. Our work paves the way for non-Abelian integrated photonics towards abundant applications.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-62481-8

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