An operator-based approach to topological photonics

Recently, the study of topological structures in photonics has garnered significant interest, as these systems can realize robust, nonreciprocal chiral edge states and cavity-like confined states that have applications in both linear and nonlinear devices. However, current band theoretic approaches to understanding topology in photonic systems yield fundamental limitations on the classes of structures that can be studied. Here, we develop a theoretical framework for assessing a photonic structure’s topology directly from its effective Hamiltonian and position operators, as expressed in real space, and without the need to calculate the system’s Bloch eigenstates or band structure. Using this framework, we show that nontrivial topology, and associated boundary-localized chiral resonances, can manifest in photonic crystals with broken time-reversal symmetry that lack a complete band gap, a result that may have implications for new topological laser designs. Finally, we use our operator-based framework to develop a novel class of invariants for topology stemming from a system’s crystalline symmetries, which allows for the prediction of robust localized states for creating waveguides and cavities.