Topological Photonics and the four-dimensional quantum Hall effect

In this seminar, I will give an introduction to topological photonics, that is, the study of topological band structures and resulting topological phenomena in photonic systems. I will first review basic concepts of topological band structures, and then explain what it means to realize topological band structures in photonic systems. I will particularly emphasize some important differences with respect to solid-state electron systems. I then present some of my own works in topological photonics, such as the synthetic dimensions in photonic systems, which allows one to explore models and phenomena in high dimensions including the four-dimensional quantum Hall effect.