Scientists just created spacetime crystals made of knotted light

Hopfions are three-dimensional topological textures whose internal “spin” patterns weave into closed, interlinked loops. They have been observed or theorized in magnets and light fields, but previously they were mainly produced as isolated objects. The authors show how to assemble them into ordered arrays that repeat periodically, much like atoms in a crystal, only here the pattern repeats in time as well as in space.

The key is a two-color, or bichromatic, light field whose electric vector traces a changing polarization state over time. By carefully superimposing beams with different spatial modes and opposite circular polarizations, the team defines a “pseudospin” that evolves in a controlled rhythm. When the two colors are set to a simple ratio, the field beats with a fixed period, creating a chain of hopfions that recur every cycle.

Starting from this one-dimensional chain, the researchers then describe how to sculpt higher-order versions whose topological strength can be dialed up or down. In their scheme, one can tune an integer that counts how many times the internal loops wind and even flip its sign by swapping the two wavelengths. In simulations, the resulting fields show near-ideal topological quality when integrated over a full period.

Beyond time-only repetition, the paper outlines a route to true three-dimensional hopfion crystals: a far-field lattice formed by an array of tiny emitters with tailored phase and polarization, all driven at two close colors. The lattice naturally divides into subcells with opposite local topology, yet preserves a clean, alternating pattern across the whole structure. The authors sketch practical layouts using dipole arrays, grating couplers, or microwave antennas to realize the source arrangement.

Unlike earlier optical hopfions that relied on beam diffraction along the propagation axis, this design works in the joint spacetime domain at a fixed plane, with periodic beating doing the heavy lifting. The team also discusses when the structures can “fly” some distance while maintaining their topology, and when diffraction undermines their integrity.

Why it matters: topological textures like skyrmions have already reshaped ideas for dense, low-error data storage and signal routing. Extending that toolkit to hopfion crystals in light could unlock high-dimensional encoding schemes, resilient communications, atom trapping strategies, and new light-matter interactions. “The birth of spacetime hopfion crystals,” the authors write, opens a path to condensed, robust topological information processing across optical, terahertz, and microwave domains.