Despite the extensive studies of topological states, their characterization in strongly nonlinear classical systems has been lacking. In this work, we identify the proper definition of Berry phase for nonlinear bulk waves and characterize topological phases in one-dimensional (1D) generalized nonlinear Schrödinger equations in the strongly nonlinear regime, where the general nonlinearities are beyond Kerr-like interactions. Without utilizing linear analysis, we develop an analytic strategy to demonstrate the quantization of nonlinear Berry phase due to reflection symmetry. Mode amplitude itself plays a key role in nonlinear modes and controls topological phase transitions. We then show bulk-boundary correspondence by identifying the associated nonlinear topological edge modes. Interestingly, anomalous topological modes decay away from lattice boundaries to plateaus governed by fixed points of nonlinearities. Our work opens the door to the rich physics between topological phases of matter and nonlinear dynamics.
© 2022. The Author(s).