title: Topological creation and destruction of edge states in photonic graphene.
abstract: We experimentally demonstrate a topological transition of classical light in "photonic graphene": an array of waveguides arranged in the honeycomb geometry. As the system is uniaxially strained (compressed), the two unique Dirac points (present in the spectrum of conventional graphene) merge and annihilate each other, and a band gap forms. As a result, edge states are created on the zigzag edge and destroyed on the bearded edge. These results are applicable for any 2D honeycomb-type structure, from carbon-based graphene to photonic lattices and crystals.
authors.affiliation: Physics Department and Solid State Institute, Technion, Haifa 32000, Israel.
authors.forename: Mikael C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Rechtsman
authors.affiliation: Physics Department and Solid State Institute, Technion, Haifa 32000, Israel.
authors.forename: Yonatan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Plotnik
authors.affiliation: Institute of Applied Physics, Abbe Center of Photonics, Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, Max-Wien-Platz 1, 07743 Jena, Germany.
authors.forename: Julia M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Zeuner
authors.affiliation: The Key Laboratory of Weak-Light Nonlinear Photonics, Ministry of Education and TEDA Applied Physics School, Nankai University, Tianjin 300457, China.
authors.forename: Daohong
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Song
authors.affiliation: The Key Laboratory of Weak-Light Nonlinear Photonics, Ministry of Education and TEDA Applied Physics School, Nankai University, Tianjin 300457, China and Department of Physics and Astronomy, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, California 94132, USA.
authors.forename: Zhigang
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Institute of Applied Physics, Abbe Center of Photonics, Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, Max-Wien-Platz 1, 07743 Jena, Germany.
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Szameit
authors.affiliation: Physics Department and Solid State Institute, Technion, Haifa 32000, Israel.
authors.forename: Mordechai
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Segev