Topological superradiance in a degenerate Fermi gas

We predict the existence of a topological superradiant state in a two-component degenerate Fermi gas in a cavity. The superradiant light generation in the transversely driven cavity mode induces a cavity-assisted spin-orbit coupling in the system and opens a bulk gap at half filling. This mechanism can simultaneously drive a topological phase transition in the system, yielding a topological superradiant state. We map out the steady-state phase diagram of the system in the presence of an effective Zeeman field, and identify a critical tetracritical point beyond which the topological and the conventional superraidiant phase boundaries separate. We propose to detect the topological phase transition based on its signatures in either the momentum distribution of the atoms or in the cavity photon occupation.