Skyrmions are localized, particle-like excitations in materials that retain their structure due to topological constraints (i.e., restrictions arising from properties that remain unchanged under smooth deformations). These quasiparticles, first introduced in high-energy physics and quantum field theory, have since attracted intense interest in condensed matter physics and photonics, owing to their potential as robust carriers for information storage and manipulation.
Researchers at Sun Yat-sen University and Tianjin University recently reported the first experimental realization of single-photon quantum skyrmions (i.e., localized light structures) in a semiconductor cavity quantum electrodynamics (QED) system. Their paper, published in Nature Physics, could open new possibilities for the study of quantum light-matter interactions, while also contributing to the advancement of photonic quantum devices.
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