Fast energy transfer in an acoustic multicavity coupler based on the Su-Schrieffer-Heeger topological model

In this work, a compact acoustic coupler based on the Su-Schrieffer-Heeger topological model is presented. The coupler is composed of a cavity array and a series of slits, and the driving pulses in the system are achieved by modulating the width of the slits. The propagation process of acoustic energy is greatly accelerated by selecting and optimizing the driving pulses within a compact configuration. An optimized protocol is adopted to drive the system and the coupler is greatly shortened to 0.3 m. Stable and asymmetric energy transfer is realized from the initial cavity to the end cavity via adiabatic state evolution. Benefitting from the topological protection exhibited by the energy band gap in the proposed multicavity coupler, the energy transfer remains robust after accelerating operation, which is verified experimentally. More uniquely, the coupler has application potential in unidirectional or nonreciprocal energy transfer when a certain loss or spatiotemporal modulation are introduced into the coupler, guaranteeing the security of signal exchange.