Enhanced sensing mechanism based on shifting an exceptional point

TL;DR

This paper introduces a novel sensing mechanism that shifts an exceptional point to enhance sensor response without destroying the EP, enabling effective multiple sensing in sequence.

Contribution

A new EP-based sensing method that shifts the EP for response enhancement, avoiding EP destruction and suitable for sequential multiple sensing applications.

Findings

Demonstrated a mass sensor with enhanced sensitivity

Implemented a gyroscope with improved response

Validated the mechanism through physical models

Abstract

Non-Hermitian systems associated with exceptional points (EPs) are expected to demonstrate a giant response enhancement for various sensors. The widely investigated enhancement mechanism based on diverging from an EP should destroy the EP and further limits its applications for multiple sensing scenarios in a time sequence. To break the above limit, here we proposed a new enhanced sensing mechanism based on shifting an EP. Different from the mechanism of diverging from an EP, our scheme is an EP non-demolition and the giant enhancement of response is acquired by a slight shift of the EP along the parameter axis induced by perturbation. The new sensing mechanism can promise the most ffective response enhancement for all sensors in the case of multiple sensing in a time sequence. To verify our sensing mechanism, we construct a mass sensor and a gyroscope with concrete physical implementations. Our work will deepen the understanding of EP-based sensing and inspire designing various high sensitivity sensors in different physical systems.