Solvable non-Hermitian skin effects and real-space exceptional points: Non-Hermitian generalized Bloch theorem

TL;DR

This paper introduces a non-Hermitian generalized Bloch theorem that analytically characterizes eigenvalues and eigenstates, enabling rigorous analysis of skin effects and real-space exceptional points in one-dimensional non-Hermitian systems.

Contribution

The authors develop a widely applicable analytical framework for non-Hermitian systems that breaks translation symmetry, connecting to the generalized Brillouin zone method and enabling precise study of skin effects.

Findings

Analytical expressions for eigenvalues and eigenstates in non-Hermitian models.

Conditions for the existence of non-Hermitian skin effects.

Identification and analysis of real-space exceptional points.

Abstract

Non-Hermitian systems can exhibit extraordinary boundary behaviors, known as the non-Hermitian skin effects, where all the eigenstates are localized exponentially at one side of lattice model. To give a full understanding and control of non-Hermitian skin effects, we have developed the non-Hermitian generalized Bloch theorem to provide the analytical expression for all solvable eigenvalues and eigenstates, in which translation symmetry is broken due to the open boundary condition. By introducing the Vieta's theorem for any polynomial equation with arbitrary degree, our approach is widely applicable for one-dimensional non-Hermitian tight-binding models. With the non-Hermitian generalized Bloch theorem, we can analyze the condition of existence or non-existence of the non-Hermitian skin effects at a mathematically rigorous level. Additionally, the non-Hermitian generalized Bloch theorem allows us to explore the real-space exceptional points. We also establish the connection between our approach and the generalized Brillouin zone method. To illustrate our main results, we examine two concrete examples including the Su-Schrieffer-Heeger chain model with long-range couplings, and the ladder model with non-reciprocal interaction. Our non-Hermitian generalized Bloch theorem provides an efficient way to analytically study various non-Hermitian phenomena in more general cases.