Controlling wave-front shape and propagation time with tunable disordered non-Hermitian multilayers

TL;DR

This paper introduces a novel disordered non-Hermitian multilayer system that enables dynamic control of wave-front shape and propagation time, with tunable properties for advanced optical applications.

Contribution

It presents a new architecture combining disordered metamaterials and non-Hermitian photonics to control light propagation and wave-fronts with tunable disorder and nonlinear effects.

Findings

Ability to switch kink formation on and off by disorder level

Flexible tuning of output intensity via gain and loss saturation

Control over passage time and wave-front shape of incident light

Abstract

Unique and flexible properties of non-Hermitian photonic systems attract ever-increasing attention via delivering a whole bunch of novel optical effects and allowing for efficient tuning light-matter interactions on nano- and microscales. Together with an increasing demand for the fast and spatially compact methods of light governing, this peculiar approach paves a broad avenue to novel optical applications. Here, unifying the approaches of disordered metamaterials and non-Hermitian photonics, we propose a conceptually new and simple architecture driven by disordered loss-gain multilayers and, therefore, providing a powerful tool to control both the passage time and the wave-front shape of incident light with different switching times. For the first time we show the possibility to switch on and off kink formation by changing the level of disorder in the case of adiabatically raising wave fronts. At the same time, we deliver flexible tuning of the output intensity by using the nonlinear effect of loss and gain saturation. Since the disorder strength in our system can be conveniently controlled with the power of the external pump, our approach can be considered as a basis for different active photonic devices.