2025/05/16 by Eric R. Bittner, Bittner, Eric R, Silva-Acuna, Carlos
Physics and Astronomy · #Chemical Physics (physics.chem-ph) #FOS: Physical sciences #Materials Science (cond-mat.mtrl-sci) #Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics (cond-mat.mes-hall) #Nonlinear Photonic Systems #Quantum optics and atomic interactions #Topological Materials and Phenomena
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2505.11450
openalex publication_date 2025/05/16 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
We present a velocity-gauge formalism for computing nonlinear current response functions in periodic systems and apply it to the Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) model as a minimal topological testbed. By retaining the full minimal coupling Hamiltonian and avoiding the rotating wave approximation, we construct gauge-consistent expressions for the linear and third-order current susceptibilities using retarded Green's functions. Our results reveal how nonlinear optical spectra encode not only energy-level transitions but also interband phase coherence and topological winding. In the topological phase, the third-order response exhibits characteristic phase inversions and spectral asymmetries that are absent in the trivial phase. These features reflect geometric changes in the Bloch eigenstates and highlight the role of virtual pathways in shaping the nonlinear signal. Our framework offers a robust and extensible platform for modeling nonlinear light-matter interactions in topological materials beyond the dipole approximation and the standard Coulomb-gauge formulation in molecular spectroscopy.