Topological insulator vertical-cavity laser array

Topological insulator lasers are arrays of semiconductor lasers that exploit fundamental features of topology to force all emitters to act as a single coherent laser. In this study, we demonstrate a topological insulator vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) array. Each VCSEL emits vertically, but the in-plane coupling between emitters in the topological-crystalline platform facilitates coherent emission of the whole array. Our topological VCSEL array emits at a single frequency and displays interference, highlighting that the emitters are mutually coherent. Our experiments exemplify the power of topological transport of light: The light spends most of its time oscillating vertically, but the small in-plane coupling is sufficient to force the array of individual emitters to act as a single laser.