We propose dynamical protocols allowing the realization of topological surface states in isolation. Our approach builds on the concept of synthetic dimensions effectively generated by driving systems of given physical dimension with incommensurate frequencies. As a concrete example, we first consider three-dimensional topological surface states of a four-dimensional quantum Hall insulator via a (1+2)-dimensional protocol. We present first principle analytical calculations demonstrating that the engineered Floquet systems lie in the universality class of the corresponding topological insulator surface phases, the difference being that the latter require a supporting bulk, while the former do not. We back the analytical approach by numerical simulations and present a detailed blueprint for the realization of the synthetic surface phase with existing quantum linear optical network device technology. We then discuss generalizations, including a proposal for a quantum simulator of the two-dimensional surface states of a three-dimensional spin quantum Hall insulator in (1+1) dimensions.
The seminar will be in hybrid format -- presential in the seminar room, but also online on Zoom:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83829318876?pwd=Z2pqbUtIMEV3NUQvU0hpakp0NGtsUT09
