Topologically Enhanced Giant Broadband Second-Harmonic Generation in Weyl Semiconductor Tellurium

Topologically Enhanced Giant Broadband Second-Harmonic Generation in Weyl Semiconductor Tellurium | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Topologically Enhanced Giant Broadband Second-Harmonic Generation in Weyl Semiconductor Tellurium Dong Sun, Delang Liang, Mingyang Qin, Yong Liu, Weiming Wang, and 10 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-6913329/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 24 Nov, 2025 Read the published version in Nature Communications → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Realizing strong nonlinear optical (NLO) responses in atomically thin layered materials is essential for the advancement of nanoscale photonic and on-chip integrated optoelectronic devices. However, the operation range of layered materials with large second-order susceptibility \(\:{\chi\:}^{\left(2\right)}\) is often limited to very narrow wavelength range, and reports in the mid-infrared (MIR) region are rare. The topological engineering of materials to enhance nonlinear optical response provides an alternative route for such purpose. In this study, we demonstrate that Weyl semiconductor tellurium (Te) nanoflakes exhibit giant second harmonic generation (SHG) responses over ultrabroadband infrared wavelength range (1.2–4.9 µm) including the challenging MIR wavelength, with a conversion efficiency two orders of magnitude greater than that of GaSe. The extracted \(\:{\chi\:}^{\left(2\right)}\) spectrum reveals a significant peak of 5.0 \(\:\pm\:\) 0.4 nm V - 1 at 2.2-µm excitation and two shoulders, which can be clearly attributed to three different two-photon resonances with interband transitions in the vicinity of three different Weyl cones, consistent with the topological enhancement of SHG. The intrinsic giant, highly anisotropic, and ultrabroadband SHG response of Te nanoflakes promises unprecedented versatility and efficiency in MIR frequency conversion. Our results also highlight the potential of enhancing NLO responses by engineering Berry phase in topological materials and underscore the practical applications of Te nanoflakes in advanced MIR nonlinear optical devices. Physical sciences/Optics and photonics/Optical physics/Nonlinear optics Physical sciences/Optics and photonics/Applied optics/Mid-infrared photonics Physical sciences/Physics/Electronics, photonics and device physics/Photonic devices Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Supplementary Files SupplementaryInformationR1.docx Revised Supporting Information for Topologically Enhanced Giant Broadband Second-Harmonic Generation in Weyl Semiconductor Tellurium Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 24 Nov, 2025 Read the published version in Nature Communications → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-6913329","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":497592751,"identity":"9b0ab9e6-5ac8-421d-97d7-26da82c76732","order_by":0,"name":"Dong 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Portfolio","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":false,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"ejp","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false},"keywords":"","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6913329/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-6913329/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eRealizing strong nonlinear optical (NLO) responses in atomically thin layered materials is essential for the advancement of nanoscale photonic and on-chip integrated optoelectronic devices. However, the operation range of layered materials with large second-order susceptibility \u003cspan class=\"InlineEquation\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"mathinline\"\u003e\\(\\:{\\chi\\:}^{\\left(2\\right)}\\)\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e is often limited to very narrow wavelength range, and reports in the mid-infrared (MIR) region are rare. The topological engineering of materials to enhance nonlinear optical response provides an alternative route for such purpose. In this study, we demonstrate that Weyl semiconductor tellurium (Te) nanoflakes exhibit giant second harmonic generation (SHG) responses over ultrabroadband infrared wavelength range (1.2\u0026ndash;4.9 \u0026micro;m) including the challenging MIR wavelength, with a conversion efficiency two orders of magnitude greater than that of GaSe. The extracted \u003cspan class=\"InlineEquation\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"mathinline\"\u003e\\(\\:{\\chi\\:}^{\\left(2\\right)}\\)\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e spectrum reveals a significant peak of 5.0 \u003cspan class=\"InlineEquation\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"mathinline\"\u003e\\(\\:\\pm\\:\\)\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e 0.4 nm V\u003csup\u003e-\u003cspan citationid=\"CR1\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/sup\u003e at 2.2-\u0026micro;m excitation and two shoulders, which can be clearly attributed to three different two-photon resonances with interband transitions in the vicinity of three different Weyl cones, consistent with the topological enhancement of SHG. The intrinsic giant, highly anisotropic, and ultrabroadband SHG response of Te nanoflakes promises unprecedented versatility and efficiency in MIR frequency conversion. Our results also highlight the potential of enhancing NLO responses by engineering Berry phase in topological materials and underscore the practical applications of Te nanoflakes in advanced MIR nonlinear optical devices.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Topologically Enhanced Giant Broadband Second-Harmonic Generation in Weyl Semiconductor Tellurium","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-08-11 07:39:07","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6913329/v1","editorialEvents":[],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"nature-communications","isNatureJournal":true,"hasQc":false,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"NCOMMS","sideBox":"Learn more about [Nature Communications](http://www.nature.com/ncomms/)","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"https://mts-ncomms.nature.com/","title":"Nature Communications","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"ejp","reportingPortfolio":"Nature Communications","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"44e6b025-1c3e-49b4-a0d3-56a9fb29744d","owner":[],"postedDate":"August 11th, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"published-in-journal","subjectAreas":[{"id":52861084,"name":"Physical sciences/Optics and photonics/Optical physics/Nonlinear optics"},{"id":52861085,"name":"Physical sciences/Optics and photonics/Applied optics/Mid-infrared photonics"},{"id":52861086,"name":"Physical sciences/Physics/Electronics, photonics and device physics/Photonic devices"}],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2025-11-25T08:09:19+00:00","versionOfRecord":{"articleIdentity":"rs-6913329","link":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-65353-3","journal":{"identity":"nature-communications","isVorOnly":false,"title":"Nature Communications"},"publishedOn":"2025-11-24 05:00:00","publishedOnDateReadable":"November 24th, 2025"},"versionCreatedAt":"2025-08-11 07:39:07","video":"","vorDoi":"10.1038/s41467-025-65353-3","vorDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-65353-3","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-6913329","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-6913329","identity":"rs-6913329","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}