Topology and criticality in non-Hermitian multimodal optical resonators through engineered losses

Abstract:Non-Hermitian topological matter provides a platform for engineering phenomena that go beyond the capabilities of Hermitian systems, enabling the use of losses to engineer topological phenomena. Non-Hermitian models often rely on artificial platforms made of engineered lattices because controlling losses in natural compounds is challenging. Although typical models for non-Hermitian photonic matter are often single mode, photonic systems are often multimodal, producing mixing between different normal modes in each site. In this work, we explore a generalized family of multimodal non-Hermitian lattices, featuring multiple resonant modes. We show that these multimodal models are capable of featuring topological modes and criticality, similar to the artificial single-mode models often considered. We analyze the robustness of these non-Hermitian topological modes to fluctuation of local losses, disorder, and artificial gauge field. We show that these effects can be captured via both a full microscopic model and effective multiorbital models. Specifically, we show that due to their multiorbital nature, the localization properties of non-Hermitian multiorbital models can be controlled by an external gauge field. Our results demonstrate that internal orbital degrees of freedom provide a promising strategy to engineer controllable non-Hermitian topology and criticality.

Optics (physics.optics); Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics (cond-mat.mes-hall); Quantum Physics (quant-ph)

arXiv:2509.05163 [physics.optics]

(or arXiv:2509.05163v2 [physics.optics] for this version)

https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2509.05163 Focus to learn more arXiv-issued DOI via DataCite

https://doi.org/10.1103/ws84-xkh2 Focus to learn more DOI(s) linking to related resources

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