Fig. 2: Interference of plane waves can create topological structures by water spin, polarization, velocity and displacement. (IMAGE)

Light Publishing Center, Changchun Institute of Optics, Fine Mechanics And Physics, CAS

Fig. 2: Interference of plane waves can create topological structures by water spin, polarization, velocity and displacement.

Caption

Fig. 2: Interference of plane waves can create topological structures by water spin, polarization, velocity and displacement. a, A single plane wave propagating along the x axis carrying non-transverse polarization and transverse spin. b, Interference of several plane waves with the same frequencies and amplitudes but with wavevectors in different directions, which can carry complex vector textures.

But the magic doesn't stop there. The interference of water waves allows for even more complex structures. The researchers show that the interference patterns can give rise to skyrmions and merons—structures where the displacement vectors of water particles point in all possible spatial directions within a unit cell. These configurations are reminiscent of those found in quantum systems and could provide valuable insights into the underlying principles of topological phenomena.

Credit

B. Wang, Z. Che et al.

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