Raskatla V, Liu T, Li J, MacDonald K F, Zheludev Nikolay I
Optoelectronics Research Centre, <a href="https://ror.org/01ryk1543">University of Southampton</a>, Highfield, Southampton SO17 1BJ, United Kingdom.
Centre for Disruptive Photonic Technologies and The Photonics Institute, SPMS, <a href="https://ror.org/02e7b5302">Nanyang Technological University</a>, Singapore 637371, Singapore.
Phys Rev Lett. 2024 Sep 27;133(13):136202. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.133.136202.
We show that the continuous time crystal state can arise in an ensemble of linear oscillators from nonconservative coupling via optical radiation pressure forces. This new mechanism comprehensively explains observations of the time crystal state in an array of nanowires illuminated with light [T. Liu et al., Nat. Phys. 19, 986 (2023).NPAHAX1745-247310.1038/s41567-023-02023-5]. Being fundamentally different from regimes of nonlinear synchronization, it has relevance to a wide range of interacting many-body systems, including in the realms of chemistry, biology, weather, and nanoscale matter.
