Non-Abelian gauge fields and topological insulators in shaken optical lattices
Abstract
Time-periodic driving like lattice shaking offers a low-demanding method to generate artificial gauge fields in optical lattices. We identify the relevant symmetries that have to be broken by the driving function for that purpose and demonstrate the power of this method by making concrete proposals for its application to two-dimensional lattice systems: We show how to tune frustration and how to create and control band touching points like Dirac cones in the shaken kagom\'e lattice. We propose the realization of a topological and a quantum spin Hall insulator in a shaken spin-dependent hexagonal lattice. We describe how strong artificial magnetic fields can be achieved for example in a square lattice by employing superlattice modulation. Finally, exemplified on a shaken spin-dependent square lattice, we develop a method to create strong non-Abelian gauge fields.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.1205.1398,
title = {Non-Abelian gauge fields and topological insulators in shaken optical lattices},
author = {Philipp Hauke and Olivier Tieleman and Alessio Celi and Christoph Ölschläger and Juliette Simonet and Julian Struck and Malte Weinberg and Patrick Windpassinger and Klaus Sengstock and Maciej Lewenstein and André Eckardt},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1205.1398},
year = {2012}
}
Comments
5 pages, 4 figures + supplemental material (2 pages, 1 figure). Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev. Lett.. Minor changes with respect to version 2 to improve presentation