Wladimir A Benalcázar

Assistant Professor of Physics,

Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA

Overview

I am an Assistant Professor of Physics at Emory University. My group investigates a broad range of topics in topological quantum matter — phases of matter at low temperatures that exhibit remarkable collective and robust properties. For example, these phases give rise to unconventional states characterized by nonreciprocal dynamics or the potential to store quantum information in inherently stable ways.
Remarkably, some of the features of topological phases can be engineered in synthetic photonic or acoustic crystals. We collaborate closely with experimental groups to explore these analogs of topological matter—both to harness their unique functionalities and to realize proof-of-concept demonstrations of topological phenomena before they are observed in natural systems.

I obtained my Ph.D in Physics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2018.

Interests

Topological insulators, superconductors and synthetic materials
Open and interacting quantum systems
Quantum information characterization of matter, quantum dynamics

Academic positions

Assistant Professor of Physics, 2022-now

Emory University, USA
Moore Postdoctoral Fellow, 2021-2022

Princeton University, USA
Eberly Postdoctoral Fellow, 2018-2021

Pennsylvania State University, USA

Research

Editorials and commentary on our research

The proposal of higher-order topological insulators has helped shape a new research direction within topological phases of matter. This work was highlighted in Topological Insulators Turn a Corner (APS Physics). Experimental realizations of these phases across photonic, mechanical, and electrical platforms drew wide attention, with commentary in journals such as Waves Cornered (Nature), Topology Reaches Higher Spheres (Nature Physics), and Topological Lattices Lit at the Corners (Nature Photonics). More recently, the extension of these phases to atomic-scale systems using STM was featured in Protected Corners (Nature Materials).

Selected publications

(Links to my complete list of publications in Google Scholar and the arXiv).

Higher-order topological knots and the classification of non-Hermitian lattices under Cn symmetry

Wang Y, Benalcazar WA
Phys. Rev. B 111 (20), 205123, 2025
Journal | arXiv

Polarization and weak topology in Chern insulators

Vaidya S, Rechtsman MC, Benalcazar WA
Phys. Rev. Lett. 132 (11), 116602, 2024
Journal | arXiv

Topological phases of photonic crystals under crystalline symmetries

Vaidya S, Ghorashi A, Christensen T, Rechtsman MC, Benalcazar WA
Phys. Rev. B 108 (8), 085116, 2023
Journal | arXiv

Chiral-symmetric higher-order topological phases of matter

Benalcazar WA, Cerjan A
Phys. Rev. Lett. 128 (12), 127601, 2022
Journal | arXiv

Bound states in the continuum of higher-order topological insulators

Benalcazar WA, Cerjan A
Phys. Rev. B 101, 161116, 2020
Journal | arXiv

Quantization of fractional corner charge in Cn-symmetric topological crystalline insulators

Benalcazar WA, Li T, Hughes TL
Phys. Rev. B 99 (24), 245151, 2019
Selected as Editors’ suggestion
Journal | arXiv

Electric multipole moments, topological multipole moment pumping, and chiral hinge states in crystalline insulators

Benalcazar WA, Bernevig BA, and Hughes TL
Phys. Rev. B 96, 245115, 2017
Selected as Editors’ suggestion and featured in a Viewpoint
Also, selected as a 50th Anniversary Milestone Paper by Phys. Rev. B.
Journal | arXiv

Quantized electric multipole insulators

Benalcazar WA, Bernevig BA, and Hughes TL
Science 357 (6346), 61-66, 2017
Journal | arXiv

Classification of two-dimensional topological crystalline superconductors
and Majorana bound states at disclinations

Benalcazar WA, Teo JY, and Hughes TL
Phys. Rev. B 89 (22), 224503, 2014
Journal | arXiv

Team

Current Group

Pedro Fittipaldi de Castro
PhD candidate in Physics
Aether Zhou
(co-advised with Luiz Santos)
PhD student in Physics

Haylen Gerhard
PhD candidate in Physics
Andrew Kalish
Undergrad student in Physics

Alumnus

Yifan (Ivan) Wang
Undergrad Honors student in Physics
(Now grad student in Physics at UIUC)

Teaching

I have developed and instructed four courses in the Department of Physics at Emory University:

PHYS 152: Physics for Scientists and Engineers II

This is the second part of a two-semester introductory physics sequence for undergraduates. The course covers the fundamentals of electricity, magnetism, optics, and special relativity.

PHYS 421: Thermodynamics and Statistical Physics

This advanced undergraduate course provides a comprehensive introduction to thermal and statistical physics. It begins with principles of counting and probability, leading to the Boltzmann distribution and the partition function. Key thermodynamic concepts such as entropy, heat, temperature, and chemical potential are introduced, culminating in the grand canonical ensemble and the derivation of Fermi-Dirac and Bose-Einstein statistics. The course concludes with discussions on Debye theory, Planck’s radiation law, and Bose-Einstein condensation. It uses paradigmatic examples such as the ideal gas and the Ising model.

PHYS 501: Quantum Mechanics

This is a core graduate-level course that introduces the foundations of quantum mechanics. Topics include the mathematical structure of Hilbert spaces, quantum states and operators, time evolution, symmetries, angular momentum and spin, and standard approximation methods for quantum systems.

PHYS 751: Selected Topics — Topological Phases of Matter

This advanced graduate seminar, which I have taught twice, presents a systematic introduction to the theory of topological phases of matter. It explores one-, two-, and three-dimensional topological systems through key conceptual frameworks and model Hamiltonians.