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arXiv · 2306.07493

Backscattering-free edge states below all bands in two-dimensional auxetic media

Wenting Cheng·Kai Qian·Nan Cheng·Nicholas Boechler·Xiaoming Mao·Kai Sun
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Abstract

Unidirectional and backscattering-free propagation of sound waves is of fundamental interest in physics, and highly sought-after in engineering. Current strategies utilize topologically protected chiral edge modes in bandgaps, or complex mechanisms involving active constituents or nonlinearity. Here we propose a new class of passive, linear, one-way edge states based on spin-momentum locking of Rayleigh waves in two-dimensional media in the limit of vanishing bulk modulus, which provides $100\%$ unidirectional and backscattering-free edge propagation at a broad range of frequencies instead of residing in gaps between bulk bands. We further show that such modes are characterized by a new topological winding number that is analogous to discrete angular momentum eigenvalues in quantum mechanics. These passive and backscattering-free edge waves have the potential to enable a new class of phononic devices in the form of lattices or continua that work in previously inaccessible frequency ranges.

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Wenting Cheng, Kai Qian, Nan Cheng, Nicholas Boechler, Xiaoming Mao, Kai Sun. 2023-06-13. Backscattering-free edge states below all bands in two-dimensional auxetic media. https://arxiv.org/abs/2306.07493

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