Topological edge states and Aharanov-Bohm caging with ultracold atoms carrying orbital angular momentum

Pelegrí, G. and Marques, A. M. and Dias, R. G. and Daley, A. J. and Mompart, J. and Ahufinger, V. (2019) Topological edge states and Aharanov-Bohm caging with ultracold atoms carrying orbital angular momentum. Physical Review A, 99 (2). 023613. ISSN 2469-9926 (https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.99.023613)

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Abstract

We show that bosonic atoms loaded into orbital angular momentum l=1 states of a lattice in a diamond-chain geometry provide a flexible and simple platform for exploring a range of topological effects. This system exhibits robust edge states that persist across the gap-closing points, indicating the absence of a topological transition. We discuss how to perform the topological characterization of the model with a generalization of the Zak's phase and we show that this system constitutes a realization of a square-root topological insulator. Furthermore, the relative phases arising naturally in the tunneling amplitudes lead to the appearance of Aharanov-Bohm caging in the lattice. We discuss how these properties can be realized and observed in ongoing experiments.