Single-antenna super-resolution positioning with nonseparable toroidal pulses

Abstract: The fundamental principle of satellite or node-based positioning involves triangulating the receiver's coordinates through the intersection of spatial distances. Recent advancements in hybrid wireless networks have yielded high-precision positioning at decimetre-level (wavelength-level) (Nature 611, 473-478 (2022)), approaching the resolution limits in free space. Here, we present a three-dimensional (3D) super-resolution positioning paradigm in free space by utilizing a novel kind of topologically structured pulses, toroidal electromagnetic pulses (Nat. Photonics 16(7), 523-528 (2022); Sci. Adv. 10(2), eadl1803 (2024)). Excited by the recent compact generator of toroidal pulses and their sophisticated topological and nonseparable structures, we demonstrate that the space-time nonseparability and skyrmion topology inherent in toroidal pulses can be harnessed to achieve freespace microwave 3D positioning with super-resolution accuracy, reaching the centimeter level, using a single emitting antenna. This work opens up new avenues for exploring the potential applications of topological electromagnetic pulses including but not limited to positioning, imaging, and sensing technologies.