Topological protection degrees of optical skyrmions and their electrical control

Optical skyrmions represent a novel frontier in topological optics with diverse generation methods emerging recently, offering significant potential for robust optical information processing, high-density data storage, and other advanced photonic technologies. However, significant challenges persist in understanding their topological robustness under perturbations and in achieving flexible on-demand topologically controlled generation, both of which are essential for real-world applications. Here, we propose the theory of topological protection degrees to classify the robustness of the topological texture of optical skyrmions under perturbations, distinguishing between strong and weak protection. Then, we demonstrate the electrical generation of topologically tunable optical skyrmions through a controllable modulation scheme with common optical elements. Building upon this, we experimentally validate the proposed topological protection degrees under complex perturbations. Our work lays a foundational framework for future research on topological stability of optical skyrmions and paves the way for their applications in data transmission and storage.