"Scientists Disprove Assumptions, Unveiling Topology's Mysteries"

Theoretical physicists at the Max Planck Institute for the Structure and Dynamics of Matter in Germany have conducted the first ab initio investigation of high harmonic generation from topological insulators and found no evidence of universal topological signatures. Their study challenges the assumption that topological information can be extracted from the emitted spectra. Instead, they suggest that non-topological aspects of the material, such as crystal structure and band symmetry, dominate the response. While the researchers do not rule out the existence of topological signatures in high harmonic generation, they call for more complex and robust ideas to measure topology through nonlinear optics.