Abstract
Advances in polaritonic materials, where coupling between light and matter creates hybrid states, have enhanced our ability to control light propagation at nano and atomic scales. Conventional polariton modulation techniques, particularly topological modulation, are limited by the stringent momentum-matching requirement between light and the material’s coupling mode. Here we propose a phonon-engineering strategy that utilizes anisotropic phononic materials in α-MoO3 to transform circular surface polaritons into hyperbolic asymptotic line polaritons (HALPs) in high-symmetry AlN semiconductors. This approach circumvents the strict requirement for momentum matching via phonon-induced anisotropic Lorentz-type dielectric oscillations. Our system shows broadband modulation of HALP in AlN (~55 cm−1), achieving an approximate 90° tuning range for the isofrequency contour’s open angle. This enables precise phase control for diffraction-free zero-phase propagation. Notably, precise control of atomic isotopes and crystal structure allows further modulation of HALP propagation directions. Our strategy can be generalized to other systems to achieve hyperbolic polaritons in high-symmetry materials.
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Data availability
The data that support the findings of this study are available within the paper and the Supplementary Information. Other relevant data are available from the corresponding authors upon reasonable request. Source data are provided with this paper.
Code availability
The codes that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding authors upon reasonable request.
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the the National Natural Science Foundation of China (52522208 and 52472155 to X.G., 51925203 to Q.D. and 52022025 and 51972074 to X.Y.), the National Key R&D Program of China (2023YFA1407003 to X.Y. and 2021YFA1201500 to Q.D.), the Chinese Academy of Science Project for Young Scientists in Basic Research (YSBR-086 to X.Y.), Youth Innovation Promotion Association C.A.S. to X.Y., the Postdoctoral Fellowship Program of CPSF under grant no. GZC20240349 to C.W., Beijing Natural Foundation (2254099 to C.W.), China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (2024M760681 to C.W.), the Guangdong Provincial Quantum Science Strategic Initiative (GDZX2204004 and GDZX2304001 to S. Zhang), the New Cornerstone Science Foundation, the Research Grants Council of Hong Kong (STG3/E-704/23-N, AoE/P-701/20 and 17309021 to S. Zhang) and the Competitive Research Program Award (NRF-CRP26-2021-0004 and NRF-CRP30-2023-0003 to C.W.Q.) from the NRF, Prime Minister’s Office, Singapore. We thank X. Xi and X. Wang of the State Key Laboratory of New Ceramic Materials, Tsinghua University, for their assistance and valuable suggestions on near-field testing.
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The concept for the experiment was initially developed by Q.D., Y. Liu, X.G. and X.Y. The s-SNOM experiments were performed by S.Z. and X.G. The experimental samples were prepared by S.Z. under the direction of Q.D., X.G. and X.Y. Finite-element-method simulations were performed by P.M. under the direction of Q.D., X.Y. and X.G. The theoretical model was performed by O.Y. under the direction of S. Zhang. Data processing and analysis were performed by S.Z., X.G., P.M. and O.Y., assisted by K.F., H.Y., J.Z., S. Zhou, C.W., Y. Luo and B.Y. The manuscript was written by X.G., S.Z., P.M. and O.Y., with advice from Q.D., S. Zhang, X.Y., Y. Liu and C.-W.Q. All authors discussed the results at all stages and participated in the development of the manuscript.
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Nature Nanotechnology thanks Min Seok Jang, Maxim Shcherbakov and the other, anonymous, reviewer(s) for their contribution to the peer review of this work.
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Supplementary Figs. 1–20, Notes 1–5 and Table 1.
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Simulation data points of Fig. 1d.
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Experiment and calculation data points of Fig. 4a–c.
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Zhang, S., Ma, P., You, O. et al. Phonon engineering enables hyperbolic asymptotic line polaritons. Nat. Nanotechnol. 21, 223–228 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-025-02090-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-025-02090-0
