Manipulating light-matter interactions with trifoil knot-inspired media

This study investigates the spatial distribution of electric susceptibility in a medium influenced by a trifoil knot (optical knot) topology. Analyzing the real and imaginary parts of susceptibility reveals structured patterns in absorption (0.015 $$\%$$ maximum, minimizing to 0 within $$-3.5\lambda \le x\le 3.5\lambda$$ and $$-3.5\lambda \le y\le 3.5\lambda$$ ) and refractive properties (maximum refractive response of 0.0117 $$\%$$ at $$x/\lambda$$ = 0 and $$y/\lambda$$ = 0). The results demonstrate transitions from high absorption to minimal-loss states and significant refractive behavior, with dispersion peaks reaching 0.00011703. Notably, imaginary susceptibility (Im $$\chi$$ ) ranges from -7.58 $$\times 10^{-6}$$ to 1.20 $$\times 10^{-5}$$ , indicating potential applications in quantum optics, nonlinear media, and optical switching/filtering.