Researchers at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology
have developed and successfully demonstrated a photonic Floquet topological
insulator, a new device used to protect the transport of light through a
unique, lattice of 'waveguides.' The advancement may play a key role in the
photonics industry. A description is published in the current issue of NATURE
(11 April 2013).
The photonics industry is at the heart of modern computing
and communication. It has allowed vast
amounts of data to be transmitted extremely quickly over fiber optic lines that
cross the oceans. Photonic technology
(i.e., technology that is based on the flow and control of light) is at the
heart of DVDs, fabrication of computer chips, and solar cells.