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Photonics
Special Issues
Non-Hermitian Photonics for Enhanced Light Control and Sensing
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Non-Hermitian Photonics for Enhanced Light Control and Sensing

A special issue of Photonics (ISSN 2304-6732). This special issue belongs to the section "Optical Interaction Science".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 10 August 2027 | Viewed by 2857

Editors

Dr. Dan Long

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Guest Editor
School of Physical Science and Technology, Tiangong University, Tianjin 300387, China
Interests: exceptional-point state transition; exceptional-point sensing; cavity optomechanics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Ze-Guo Wang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Quantum Science Center of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (Guangdong), Shenzhen, China
Interests: photonic quantum computing; quantum algorithms

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Symmetry has long been a cornerstone of physics, essential for understanding and describing the physical world. In 1998, Bender and Boettcher demonstrated that non-Hermitian Hamiltonians, when commuted with the PT symmetry operator, can exhibit real eigenvalues. This discovery highlighted the importance of PT symmetry, sparking a surge in research within this field. Non-Hermitian systems introduce gain and loss, making them more representative of real-world physical systems compared to traditional closed systems. Consequently, non-Hermitian physics has emerged as a new and rapidly growing research area.

Exceptional points (EPs), where eigenstates coalesce in non-Hermitian systems, present unique phenomena, such as super-sensitive measurements and topologically protected energy transport. EPs have been realized in various platforms, including waveguides, circuits, and microcavities, with whispering-gallery-mode optical microcavities being ideal for exploring EP properties.

This Special Issue invites research papers on non-Hermitian photonics and its applications in enhanced light control and sensing. We aim to present the latest theoretical and experimental advances in this field, particularly focusing on exceptional points and their applications in photonics, quantum technologies, and optical sensing. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Non-Hermitian photonics and exceptional points;
  • Applications of EPs in optical sensors and sensor enhancement;
  • Chiral mode conversion and its applications in non-Hermitian systems;
  • Cavity optomechanics and EP-based light manipulation;
  • Quantum photonics;
  • Topological light transport in non-Hermitian systems;
  • Light control and manipulation via non-Hermitian systems;
  • Waveguide systems and circuit-based non-Hermitian devices;
  • Experimental realization and applications of EPs in photonic devices;
  • Theoretical models of non-Hermitian systems in photonics.

Dr. Dan Long
Dr. Ze-Guo Wang
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Photonics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • non-Hermitian photonics
  • exceptional point sensing
  • chiral mode conversion
  • quantum photonics
  • light control
  • photonic sensors
  • non-Hermitian systems

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 1583 KB  
Article
Exceptional-Point-Enhanced Magnetic Field Sensing in a Cavity-QED System
by Zhi-Chao Han, Yu-Bo Liang, Ming-Jie Liao, Zi-Jian Lin, Shuai-Ling Wang, Jing-Ping Xu, Jabir Hakami and Ya-Ping Yang
Photonics 2026, 13(7), 690; https://doi.org/10.3390/photonics13070690 - 22 Jul 2026
Viewed by 436
Abstract
In this study, we design a new magnetic field measurement model. Specifically, we use a single two-level atom coupled to two cavities to construct a parity–time-symmetric system supporting a third-order exceptional point. If a perturbation is applied to the atomic transition frequency, the [...] Read more.
In this study, we design a new magnetic field measurement model. Specifically, we use a single two-level atom coupled to two cavities to construct a parity–time-symmetric system supporting a third-order exceptional point. If a perturbation is applied to the atomic transition frequency, the eigenvalue of the system will change, and the eigenvalue change is proportional to the cubic root of the perturbation. If the perturbation comes from the magnetic field, a sensitive magnetic field measurement device is formed. By introducing gain and loss via the input–output field, we realize a third-order EP in the non-Hermitian Hamiltonian. Our analysis shows that the system exhibits a nonlinear response to magnetic field perturbations, leading to enhanced spectral sensitivity compared to conventional linear detectors. This equivalent EP based on a cavity-QED sensing scheme breaks the limitation of passive EP sensors and provides a new theoretical idea for the design of sensitive magnetic field measurement devices. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Non-Hermitian Photonics for Enhanced Light Control and Sensing)
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14 pages, 24503 KB  
Article
Algebraic Absorption in Non-Hermitian Photonic Lattices
by Stefano Longhi
Photonics 2026, 13(6), 574; https://doi.org/10.3390/photonics13060574 - 11 Jun 2026
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 672
Abstract
Non-Hermitian photonic lattices offer unconventional control over light evolution owing to modal non-orthogonality and the resulting non-normal dynamical response. In this work, we show that a uniform passive waveguide lattice with dissipation confined to one or a few sites near an edge can [...] Read more.
Non-Hermitian photonic lattices offer unconventional control over light evolution owing to modal non-orthogonality and the resulting non-normal dynamical response. In this work, we show that a uniform passive waveguide lattice with dissipation confined to one or a few sites near an edge can exhibit an algebraic(nearly linear) decay of optical power—an absorption law forbidden in orthogonal (normal-mode) dissipative systems, where any superposition of eigenmodes yields purely multi-exponential attenuation. We demonstrate that algebraic absorption arises when the input excitation is appropriately tailored to exploit non-orthogonal modal interference, effectively channeling energy toward the dissipative boundary. In particular, under the condition of coherent perfect absorption (CPA) associated with a spectral singularity of the semi-infinite lattice, nearly complete light absorption accompanied by algebraic decay of the optical power can be achieved. Starting from the minimal configuration of a single lossy edge site, we derive compact analytical expressions for the dynamics and identify the conditions under which linear-like absorption emerges. We then extend the analysis to multiple edge-proximal lossy sites. Our results show that simple dissipative photonic lattices, when driven by suitably prepared input states, enable robust sculpting of absorption laws through non-normal dynamics, providing a new route to programmable attenuation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Non-Hermitian Photonics for Enhanced Light Control and Sensing)
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17 pages, 559 KB  
Article
Phase Transitions in Quasi-Hermitian Quantum Models at Exceptional Points of Order Four
by Miloslav Znojil
Photonics 2026, 13(3), 224; https://doi.org/10.3390/photonics13030224 - 26 Feb 2026
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 947
Abstract
Phase transition in quantum mechanics is interpreted as an evolution, at the end of which, typically, a parameter-dependent and Hermitizable Hamiltonian H(g) loses its observability. In the language of mathematics, such a “quantum catastrophe” occurs at an exceptional point of [...] Read more.
Phase transition in quantum mechanics is interpreted as an evolution, at the end of which, typically, a parameter-dependent and Hermitizable Hamiltonian H(g) loses its observability. In the language of mathematics, such a “quantum catastrophe” occurs at an exceptional point of order N (EPN). Although the Hamiltonian H(g) itself becomes unphysical in the limit of g→gEPN, it is shown that it can play the role of an unperturbed operator in an innovative perturbation-approximation analysis of the vicinity of the EPN singularity. As long as such an analysis is elementary at N≤3 and purely numerical at N≥5, we pick up N=4 and demonstrate that for an arbitrary quantum system, the specific (i.e., already sufficiently phenomenologically rich) EP4 degeneracy becomes accessible via a unitary evolution process. This process is shown realizable inside a parametric domain Dphysical, the boundaries of which are determined, near gEP4, non-numerically. Possible relevance of such a mathematical result in the context of non-Hermitian photonics is emphasized. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Non-Hermitian Photonics for Enhanced Light Control and Sensing)
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