arXiv subjects

Şahin K. Özdemir

Publications and source records attributed to Şahin K. Özdemir.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Biorthogonality of Guided Modes in Non-Hermitian Electromagnetism

Biorthogonality plays a central role in the analysis of non-Hermitian photonic systems, where modal expansions generally require both right and left eigenstates. While these concepts are straightforward within scalar and coupled-mode descriptions, their interpretation in the full vectorial Maxwell framework is less transparent. In particular, the standard electromagnetic modal orthogonality relation derived from unconjugated Lorentz reciprocity involves both electric and magnetic fields and differs in form from the biorthogonality relations obtained from conventional adjoint-operator arguments. Here, we establish the connection between these two formulations for non-Hermitian waveguiding systems with gain and loss. Starting from the full vectorial electric-field wave equation, we formulate the guided-mode problem as a quadratic eigenvalue problem in the propagation constant, construct its adjoint, and identify the corresponding left eigenmodes. We show that the left eigenmode is related to the complex conjugate of the backward-propagating electric-field mode and demonstrate that the resulting electric-field biorthogonal pairing is equivalent to the mixed electric--magnetic field relation obtained from unconjugated Lorentz reciprocity. The framework also clarifies the electromagnetic meaning of modal normalization, its connection to self-orthogonality at exceptional points, and the recovery of conventional conjugated modal orthogonality in the lossless limit. These results provide a unified operator-theoretic interpretation of electromagnetic biorthogonality and Lorentz reciprocity and establish a direct connection between the left/right eigenstate language of non-Hermitian physics and the reciprocity-based modal framework of classical electromagnetism.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2026

Data and code for collision-model Dicke-state preparation: depth-fidelity frontiers, circuit costs, and superconducting-processor measurements

Dicke states are multipartite entangled states in which a fixed number of quantum excitations is coherently shared among many qubits. Originally introduced in the context of cooperative emission and superradiance, they are now important resources for quantum sensing, networking, and collective quantum phenomena. Preparing prescribed Dicke states with high fidelity, however, remains challenging, particularly as the system size and excitation number increase. Here we present an open dataset and accompanying code for preparing Dicke states using a collision-based quantum protocol. The dataset covers systems from five to fourteen qubits over a broad range of excitation numbers and records how the best-found noiseless preparation fidelity changes with circuit depth. It also provides circuit-resource estimates and experimental measurements for selected states on the 54-qubit IQM Emerald superconducting processor. The accompanying code reproduces the processed data and validation checks, providing a reusable benchmark for studying the trade-off between state-preparation fidelity, circuit cost, and hardware noise.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2026

Massively Degenerate Coherent Perfect Absorption in Gradient-Index Fibers

Coherent perfect absorbers (CPAs) have recently attracted considerable attention due to their ability to enhance light--matter interaction. By exploiting interference, CPAs enable even weakly absorbing materials to achieve complete absorption under appropriate excitation conditions. Generalizing this concept to the simultaneous absorption of arbitrary multimode input states remains challenging, however, since conventional implementations typically operate only for a single or a very small number of input channels. Here, we propose a compact realization of a multimode coherent perfect absorber based on a gradient-index (GRIN) fiber. Using the self-imaging property of the fiber, the bulky free-space architecture of previous approaches is replaced by a monolithic waveguiding platform that supports near-degenerate rephasing of many spatial modes. We show that standard GRIN profiles optimized for minimal intermodal dispersion enable highly efficient absorption of complex multimode fields, with field-of-view reflectivities well below $1\%$ for realistic parameters. This approach provides a practical and scalable route toward efficient multimode absorption in fiber-based and integrated photonic systems, with potential applications in light harvesting, optical control, and imaging.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2026

Achieving the Quantum Fisher Information Bound in Pseudo-Hermitian Sensors

Non-Hermitian systems have attracted considerable interest over the last few decades due to their unique spectral and dynamical properties not encountered in Hermitian counterparts. An intensely debated question is whether non-Hermitian systems, described by pseudo-Hermitian Hamiltonians with real spectra, can offer enhanced sensitivity for parameter estimation when they are operated at or close to exceptional points. However, much of the current analysis and conclusions are based on mathematical formalism developed for Hermitian quantum systems, which is questionable when applied to pseudo-Hermitian Hamiltonians, whose Hilbert space metric is intrinsically parameter dependent. Here, we develop a covariant formulation of quantum Fisher information (QFI) defined on the deformed Hilbert space of pseudo-Hermitian Hamiltonians. This covariant framework ensures the preservation of the state norm and enables a consistent treatment of parameter sensitivity. We further show that the covariant QFI of pseudo-Hermitian systems is dual to the ordinary QFI of corresponding Hermitian systems. Importantly, this correspondence naturally imposes an upper bound on the covariant QFI and allows one to identify optimal projections which saturate the corresponding classical Fisher information to this ultimate limit. The developed framework also enables to set the criteria under which pseudo-Hermitian sensors can exhibit an advantage over their Hermitian counterparts of the same dimensionality.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2026

Exploring Nonreciprocal Noise Transfer under Onsager-Casimir Symmetry in Synthetic-Field Optomechanics

An optomechanical system of fundamental importance consists of two intercoupled mechanical resonators, which are radiation-pressure coupled individually to a photonic cavity. This closed-loop and overall lossy configuration possesses two exceptional points (EPs) and offers the realization of synthetic magnetism, controlled by the loop phase. To elucidate the intricate role of loop phase and EPs in this setting, we analyze the noise power spectral density profiles of internal as well as output fluctuations. In the presence of a synthetic magnetic field, the nonreciprocal routing of a signal is well known. Here, we further show that this also applies to nonreciprocal backaction noise flow when the time-reversal symmetry is broken, while the Onsager-Casimir symmetry still holds. To better quantify this phenomenon, we introduce a nonreciprocity measure that contrasts the time-reversed counterparts as a function of loop phase. We observe that nonreciprocal noise flow is enhanced for smaller intermechanical couplings at the expense of lower sensitivity, whereas for sensing purposes, using a higher intermechanical coupling constant is the more viable option.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2025

Topological state permutations in time-modulated non-Hermitian multiqubit systems with suppressed non-adiabatic transitions

Non-Hermitian systems have been at the center of intense research for over a decade, partly due to their nontrivial energy topology formed by intersecting Riemann manifolds with branch points known as exceptional points (EPs). This spectral property can be exploited, e.g., to achieve topologically controlled state permutations that are necessary for implementing a wide class of classical and quantum information protocols. However, the complex-valued spectra of typical non-Hermitian systems lead to instabilities, losses, and breakdown of adiabaticity, which impedes the practical use of EP-induced energy topologies in quantum information protocols based on state permutation symmetries. Indeed, in a given non-Hermitian multiqubit system, the dynamical winding around EPs always results in a predetermined set of attenuated final eigenstates, due to the interplay of decoherence and non-adiabatic transitions, irrespective of the initial conditions. In this work, we address this long-standing problem by introducing a model of interacting qubits governed by an effective non-Hermitian Hamiltonian that hosts novel types of EPs while maintaining a completely real energy spectrum, ensuring the absence of losses in the system's dynamics. We demonstrate that such non-Hermitian Hamiltonians enable the realization of genuine, in general, non-Abelian permutation groups in the multiqubit system's eigenspace while dynamically encircling these EPs. Our findings indicate that, contrary to previous beliefs, non-Hermiticity can be utilized to achieve controlled topological state permutations in time-modulated multiqubit systems, thus paving the way for the advancement and development of novel quantum information protocols in real-world non-Hermitian quantum systems.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2025

Chirality-induced quantum nonreciprocity

Chirality, nonreciprocity, and quantum correlations are at the center of a wide range of intriguing effects and applications across natural sciences and emerging quantum technologies. However, the direct link combining these three essential concepts has remained unknown till now. Here, we establish a chiral non-Hermitian platform with flying atoms and demonstrate chirality-induced nonreciprocal bipartite quantum correlations between two channels: Quantum correlation emerges when two spatially separated light beams of the same polarization propagate in opposite directions in the atomic cloud, and it becomes zero when they travel in the same direction. Thus, just by flipping the propagation direction of one of the beams while keeping its polarization the same as the other beam, we can create or annihilate quantum correlations between two channels. We also show that this nonreciprocal quantum correlation can be extended to multi-color sidebands with Floquet engineering. Our findings may pave the road for realizing one-way quantum effects, such as nonreciprocal squeezing or entanglement, with a variety of chiral devices, for the emerging applications of e.g., directional quantum network or nonreciprocal quantum metrology.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2024

Experimental Liouvillian exceptional points in a quantum system without Hamiltonian singularities

Hamiltonian exceptional points (HEPs) are spectral degeneracies of non-Hermitian Hamiltonians describing classical and semiclassical open systems with losses and/or gain. However, this definition overlooks the occurrence of quantum jumps in the evolution of open quantum systems. These quantum effects are properly accounted for by considering quantum Liouvillians and their exceptional points (LEPs). Specifically, an LEP corresponds to the coalescence of two or more eigenvalues and the corresponding eigenmatrices of a given Liouvillian at critical values of external parameters [Minganti \emph{et al.}, Phys. Rev. A {\bf 100}, 062131 (2019)]. Here, we explicitly describe how standard quantum process tomography, which reveals the dynamics of a quantum system, can be readily applied to detect and characterize quantum LEPs of quantum non-Hermitian systems. We conducted experiments on an IBM quantum processor to implement a prototype model with one-, two-, and three qubits simulating the decay of a single qubit through competing channels, resulting in LEPs but not HEPs. Subsequently, we performed tomographic reconstruction of the corresponding experimental Liouvillian and its LEPs using both single- and two-qubit operations. This example underscores the efficacy of process tomography in tuning and observing LEPs even in the absence of HEPs.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2024

Squeezing-enhanced quantum sensing with quadratic optomechanics

Cavity optomechanical (COM) sensors, enhanced by quantum squeezing or entanglement, have become powerful tools for measuring ultra-weak forces with high precision and sensitivity. However, these sensors usually rely on linear COM couplings, a fundamental limitation when measurements of the mechanical energy are desired. Very recently, a giant enhancement of the signal-to-noise ratio was predicted in a quadratic COM system. Here we show that the performance of such a system can be further improved surpassing the standard quantum limit by using quantum squeezed light. Our approach is compatible with available engineering techniques of advanced COM sensors and provides new opportunities for using COM sensors in tests of fundamental laws of physics and quantum metrology applications.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2024

Chiral quantum heating and cooling with an optically controlled ion

Quantum heat engines and refrigerators are open quantum systems, whose dynamics can be well understood using a non-Hermitian formalism. A prominent feature of non-Hermiticity is the existence of exceptional points (EPs), which has no counterpart in closed quantum systems. It has been shown in classical systems that dynamical encirclement in the vicinity of an EP, whether the loop includes the EP or not, could lead to chiral mode conversion. Here, we show that this is valid also for quantum systems when dynamical encircling is performed in the vicinity of their Liouvillian EPs (LEPs) which include the effects of quantum jumps and associated noise - an important quantum feature not present in previous works. We demonstrate, using a Paul-trapped ultracold ion, the first chiral quantum heating and refrigeration by dynamically encircling a closed loop in the vicinity of an LEP. We witness the cycling direction to be associated with the chirality and heat release (absorption) of the quantum heat engine (quantum refrigerator). Our experiments have revealed that not only the adiabaticity-breakdown but also the Landau-Zener-Stückelberg process play an essential role during dynamic encircling, resulting in chiral thermodynamic cycles. Our observations contributes to further understanding of chiral and topological features in non-Hermitian systems and pave a way to exploring the relation between chirality and quantum thermodynamics.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2024

Restoring Adiabatic State Transfer in Time-Modulated Non-Hermitian Systems

Non-Hermitian systems have attracted much interest in recent decades, driven partly by the existence of exotic spectral singularities, known as exceptional points (EPs), where the dimensionality of the system evolution operator is reduced. Among various intriguing applications, the discovery of EPs has suggested the potential for implementing a symmetric mode switch, when encircling them in a system parameter space. However, subsequent theoretical and experimental works have revealed that {\it dynamical} encirclement of EPs invariably results in asymmetric mode conversion; namely, the mode switching depends only on the winding direction but not on the initial state. This chirality arises from the failure of adiabaticity due to the complex spectrum of non-Hermitian systems. Although the chirality revealed has undoubtedly made a significant impact in the field, a realization of the originally sought symmetric adiabatic passage in non-Hermitian systems with EPs has since been elusive. In this work, we bridge this gap and theoretically demonstrate that adiabaticity, and therefore a symmetric state transfer, is achievable when dynamically winding around an EP. This becomes feasible by specifically choosing a trajectory in the system parameter space along which the corresponding evolution operator attains a real spectrum. Our findings, thus, offer a promise for advancing various wave manipulation protocols in both quantum and classical domains.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2024

Parity-time symmetry breaking enables swarming motility in Caenorhabditis elegans

Nonreciprocal interactions break action-reaction symmetry in systems of interacting bodies. This process inevitably introduces non-Hermitian dynamics which with its hallmark signature called exceptional points (EPs) has been a subject of intense research across different disciplines ranging from photonics to metamaterials. Whether non-Hermiticity and EPs are a fundamental property of nature and if so, how nature utilizes them to gain competitive advantage have remained largely unanswered. Although biological systems feature many examples of non-reciprocal interactions with the potential to drive non-Hermitian dynamics, these are often theoretically overlooked and not experimentally investigated. Here, we demonstrate in an active matter composed of social animal Caenorhabditis elegans and bacteria, non-Hermitian dynamics, and the emergence of EPs owing to the nonreciprocal nature of oxygen sensing, nonequilibrium interfacial current, and bacterial consumption. We observed that when driven through the EP, the system collectively breaks parity-time (PT) symmetry leading to traveling waves and arrested phase separation. We further find that these features enable the collective ability to localize interfaces between broken and exact PT-phases. Remarkably, this ability provides a strong evolutionary advantage to animals living in soil. Altogether our results provide mechanistic insights into the detailed symmetries controlling the collective response of biological systems; answer a long-standing problem; and give an example of the EP-enabled dynamics in a biological system.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2023

Fully solvable finite simplex lattices with open boundaries in arbitrary dimensions

Finite simplex lattice models are used in different branches of science, e.g., in condensed matter physics, when studying frustrated magnetic systems and non-Hermitian localization phenomena; or in chemistry, when describing experiments with mixtures. An $n$-simplex represents the simplest possible polytope in $n$ dimensions, e.g., a line segment, a triangle, and a tetrahedron in one, two, and three dimensions, respectively. In this work, we show that various fully solvable, in general non-Hermitian, $n$-simplex lattice models {with open boundaries} can be constructed from the high-order field-moments space of quadratic bosonic systems. Namely, we demonstrate that such $n$-simplex lattices can be formed by a dimensional reduction of highly-degenerate iterated polytope chains in $(k>n)$-dimensions, which naturally emerge in the field-moments space. Our findings indicate that the field-moments space of bosonic systems provides a versatile platform for simulating real-space $n$-simplex lattices exhibiting non-Hermitian phenomena, and yield valuable insights into the structure of many-body systems exhibiting similar complexity. Amongst a variety of practical applications, these simplex structures can offer a physical setting for implementing the discrete fractional Fourier transform, an indispensable tool for both quantum and classical signal processing.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2023

Dynamically crossing diabolic points while encircling exceptional curves: A programmable symmetric-asymmetric multimode switch

Nontrivial spectral properties of non-Hermitian systems can lead to intriguing effects with no counterparts in Hermitian systems. For instance, in a two-mode photonic system, by dynamically winding around an exceptional point (EP) a controlled asymmetric-symmetric mode switching can be realized. That is, the system can either end up in one of its eigenstates, regardless of the initial eigenmode, or it can switch between the two states on demand, by simply controlling the winding direction. However, for multimode systems with higher-order EPs or multiple low-order EPs, the situation can be more involved, and the ability to control asymmetric-symmetric mode switching can be impeded, due to the breakdown of adiabaticity. Here we demonstrate that this difficulty can be overcome by winding around exceptional curves by additionally crossing diabolic points. We consider a four-mode $\cal PT$-symmetric bosonic system as a platform for experimental realization of such a multimode switch. Our work provides alternative routes for light manipulations in non-Hermitian photonic setups.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2019

Scully-Lamb quantum laser model for parity-time-symmetric whispering-gallery microcavities: Gain saturation effects and non-reciprocity

We use a non-Lindbladian master equation of the Scully-Lamb laser model for the analysis of light propagation in a parity-time symmetric photonic system composed of coupled active and passive whispering-gallery microresonators. Performing the semiclassical approximation, we obtain a set of two nonlinear coupled differential equations describing the time evolution of intracavity fields. These coupled equations are able to explain the experimentally-observed light non-reciprocity [Peng {\em et al.}, Nature Physics {\bf 10}, 394 (2014), Chang {\em et al.}, Nature Photonics {\bf 8}, 524 (2014)]. We show that this effect arises from the interplay between gain saturation in the active microcavity, intercavity coupling, and losses in the cavities. Additionally, using this approach, we study the effect of the gain saturation on exceptional points, i.e., exotic degeneracies in non-Hermitian systems. Namely, we demonstrate that the inclusion of gain saturation leads to a modification of the exceptional points in the presence of intense intracavity fields. The Scully-Lamb master equation for systems of coupled optical structures, as proposed and applied here, constitutes a promising tool for the study of quantum optical effects in coupled systems with losses, gain, and gain saturation.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2017

Quantum random number generation using an on-chip plasmonic beamsplitter

We report an experimental realisation of a quantum random number generator using a plasmonic beamsplitter. Free-space single photons are converted into propagating single surface plasmon polaritons on a gold stripe waveguide via a grating. The surface plasmons are then guided to a region where they are scattered into one of two possible outputs. The presence of a plasmonic excitation in a given output determines the value of a random bit generated from the quantum scattering process. Using a stream of single surface plasmons injected into the beamsplitter we achieve a quantum random number generation rate of 2.37 Mbits/s even in the presence of loss. We characterise the quality of the random number sequence generated, finding it to be comparable to sequences from other quantum photonic-based devices. The compact nature of our nanophotonic device makes it suitable for tight integration in on-chip applications, such as in quantum computing and communication schemes.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2016

Experimental characterization of a non-local convertor for quantum photonic networks

We experimentally characterize a quantum photonic gate that is capable of converting multiqubit entangled states while acting only on two qubits. It is an important tool in large quantum networks, where it can be used for re-wiring of multipartite entangled states or for generating various entangled states required for specific tasks. The gate can be also used to generate quantum information processing resources, such as entanglement and discord. In our experimental demonstration, we converted a linear four-qubit cluster state into different entangled states, including GHZ and Dicke states. The high quality of the experimental results show that the gate has the potential of being a flexible component in distributed quantum photonic networks.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2015

Plasmon Injection to Compensate and Control Losses in Negative Index Metamaterials

Metamaterials have introduced a whole new world of unusual materials with functionalities that cannot be attained in naturally occurring material systems by mimicking and controlling the natural phenomena at subwavelength scales. However, the inherent absorption losses pose fundamental challenge to the most fascinating applications of metamaterials. Based on a novel plasmon injection (PI or Π) scheme, we propose a coherent optical amplification technique to compensate losses in metamaterials. Although the proof of concept device here operates under normal incidence only, our proposed scheme can be generalized to arbitrary form of incident waves. The Π-scheme is fundamentally different than major optical amplification schemes. It does not require gain medium, interaction with phonons, or any nonlinear medium. The Π-scheme allows for loss-free metamaterials. It is ideally suited for mitigating losses in metamaterials operating in the visible spectrum and is scalable to other optical frequencies. These findings open the possibility of reviving the early dreams of making 'magical' metamaterials from scratch.

physics.optics↗