Engineering unique localization transition with coupled Hatano-Nelson chains

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates how coupling two non-Hermitian Hatano-Nelson chains with quasiperiodic potentials can engineer and control localization transitions, mobility edges, and boundary condition effects in 1D lattice systems.

Contribution

It introduces a novel approach to manipulate localization transitions in coupled non-Hermitian chains, revealing multiple critical points and mobility edges with potential for tailored localization properties.

Findings

Coupling two QHN chains creates two critical points for localization transition.

Mobility edges emerge symmetrically around zero energy between critical points.

Asymmetric coupling can induce localization even at weak potential strengths.

Abstract

The Hatano-Nelson (HN) Hamiltonian has played a pivotal role in catalyzing research interest in non-Hermitian systems, primarily because it showcases unique physical phenomena that arise solely due to non-Hermiticity. The non-Hermiticity in the HN Hamiltonian, driven by asymmetric hopping amplitudes, induces a delocalization-localization (DL) transition in a one-dimensional (1D) lattice with random disorder, sharply contrasting with its Hermitian counterpart. A similar DL transition occurs in a 1D quasiperiodic HN (QHN) lattice, where a critical quasiperiodic potential strength separates metallic and insulating states, akin to the Hermitian case. In these systems, all states below the critical potential are delocalized, while those above are localized. In this study, we reveal that coupling two 1D QHN lattices can significantly alter the nature of the DL transition. We identify two critical points, $V_{c1} < V_{c2}$, when the nearest neighbors of the two 1D QHN lattices are cross-coupled with strong hopping amplitudes under periodic boundary conditions (PBC). Generally, all states are completely delocalized below $ V_{c1}$ and completely localized above $V_{c2}$, while two mobility edges symmetrically emerge about $\rm{Re[E]} = 0$ between $V_{c1}$ and $V_{c2}$. Notably, under specific asymmetric cross-hopping amplitudes, $V_{c1}$ approaches zero, resulting in localized states even for infinitesimally weak potential. Remarkably, we also find that the mobility edges precisely divide the delocalized and localized states in equal proportions. Furthermore, we observe that the conventional one-to-one correspondence between electronic states under PBC and open boundary conditions (OBC) in 1D HN lattices breaks