Topological Quenching of Noise in a Free-Running Moebius Microcomb
Abstract
Microcombs require ultralow-noise repetition rates to enable next-generation applications in metrology, high-speed communications, microwave photonics, and sensing, where spectral purity is a central performance metric. Best-performing sources operate actively locked at "quiet points" in parameter space, fixed by device and material properties. Creating broad, low-noise operating regions with relaxed constraints-especially in simplified free-running architectures that avoid electronics-heavy control-remains an open challenge. Here, we demonstrate a symmetry-protected topological M\"obius soliton molecule that enables intrinsically low phase noise in a fully free-running microcomb, operating without any external referencing or control. Using a microresonator-filtered laser, we implement a M\"obius geometry via interleaved microcavity modes. Upon the formation of a topological M\"obius soliton molecule, the free-running laser exhibits over 15 dB of phase-noise suppression across 10 Hz-10 kHz at a 100 GHz repetition rate, yielding -63 dBc/Hz phase noise at 1 kHz and an Allan deviation of 4x10^-10 at 10 s average time-without any external control. We show that the M\"obius structure brings dynamic robustness to the comb, and we demonstrate a symmetry-protected topological regime that enables long-term drift-invariant operation. Our results establish a route to intrinsically noise-quenched microcombs operating in a fully free-running configuration, governed by internal physical principles and suitable for field-deployable, low-noise photonic systems.
Cite
@article{arxiv.2505.18911,
title = {Topological Quenching of Noise in a Free-Running Moebius Microcomb},
author = {Debayan Das and Antonio Cutrona and Andrew C. Cooper and Luana Olivieri and Alexander G. Balanov and Sai Tak Chu and Brent E. Little and Roberto Morandotti and David J. Moss and Juan Sebastian Totero Gongora and Marco Peccianti and Gian-Luca Oppo and Alessia Pasquazi},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2505.18911},
year = {2026}
}
Comments
28 pages