Topology plays a fundamental role in contemporary physics and enables new information processing schemes and wave device physics with built-in robustness. Recently, significant efforts have been devoted to transposing topological principles to bosonic systems. In the first part of this talk, I will discuss our invention of the first topological laser, a non-reciprocal light source capable of coupling stimulated emission to selected waveguide output in a controllable manner. I will also discuss unique optical devices based on this platform. In the second part of the talk, I will discuss our recently proposed scheme to systematically implement singularities known as exceptional points in passive plasmonics. I will discuss the new scheme and how we overcame current immuno-assay nano sensing record with plasmons by more than two orders of magnitude.
Speaker's Bio
Boubacar Kanté is an associate professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences (EECS) at the University of California Berkeley. In 2010, he received a Ph.D degree in Engineering/Physics from “Université de Paris Sud” (Orsay-France). He was assistant professor and then associate professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) at UC san Diego from 2013 to 2018. His research interests include wave-matter interaction and nano-optics.
Boubacar Kanté is a 2020 Moore Inventor Fellow. He received the 2017 Office of Naval Research (ONR) Young Investigator Award, the 2016 National Science Foundation (NSF) Career Award, The best undergraduate teacher award from UC San Diego Jacob School of Engineering in 2017, the 2015 Hellman Fellowship, the Richelieu Prize in Sciences from the Chancellery of Paris Universities for the best Ph.D in France in Engineering, Material Science, Physics, Chemistry, Technology in 2010, the Young Scientist Award from the International Union of Radio Science (URSI) in Chicago in 2007, the Fellowship for excellence from the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2003 for his undergraduate studies, a Research Fellowship from the French Research Ministry for his Ph.D studies.