Observation of a phononic higher-order Weyl semimetal

作者：Luo, Li; Wang, Hai-Xiao; Lin, Zhi-Kang; Jiang, Bin; Wu, Ying; Li, Feng^*; Jiang, Jian-Hua^*

来源：Nature Materials, 2021, 20(6): 794-+.

DOI：10.1038/s41563-021-00985-6

Weyl semimetals (WSMs)(1) exhibit phenomena such as Fermi arc surface states, pseudo-gauge fields and quantum anomalies that arise from topological band degeneracy in crystalline solids for electrons(1) and metamaterials for photons(2) and phonons(3). Here we report a higher-order Weyl semimetal (HOWSM) in a phononic system that exhibits topologically protected boundary states in multiple dimensions. We created the physical realization of the HOWSM in a chiral phononic crystal with uniaxial screw symmetry. Using acoustic pump-probe spectroscopies, we observed coexisting chiral Fermi arc states on two-dimensional surfaces and dispersive hinge arc states on one-dimensional hinge boundaries. These topological boundary states link the projections of the Weyl points (WPs) in different dimensions and directions, and hence demonstrate the higher-order topological physics(4-8) in WSMs. Our study further establishes the fundamental connection between higher-order topology and Weyl physics in crystalline materials and should stimulate further work on other potential materials, such as higher-order topological nodal-line semimetals. Symmetry is utilized to realize a phononic higher-order Weyl semimetal.

• 单位
  苏州大学; 北京理工大学