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arXiv · 2409.19693

Nonlinear Non-Hermitian Skin Effect and Skin Solitons in Temporal Photonic Feedforward Lattices

Shulin Wang·Bing Wang·Chenyu Liu·Chengzhi Qin·Lange Zhao·Weiwei Liu·Stefano Longhi·Peixiang Lu
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Abstract

Here we report the experimental demonstration of the nonlinear non-Hermitian skin effect (NHSE) in an effective Kerr nonlinear temporal photonic lattice, where the high-power requirements and lack of tunability intrinsic to optical materials are overcome by an artificial nonlinearity arising from optoelectronic feedforward. Thanks to Kerr self-trapping, the nonlinear NHSE is demonstrated to possess much better localization strength and robustness at the preferred boundary compared to the linear case. Away from the preferred boundary, Kerr self-trapping can even inhibit NHSE-induced transport and form stable skin solitons. Harnessing the nonlinearity-controlled NHSE, we judiciously design an optical router with a flexibly tuned output port. Our findings promise great applications in robust signal transmission, routing, and processing.

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Shulin Wang, Bing Wang, Chenyu Liu, Chengzhi Qin, Lange Zhao, Weiwei Liu, Stefano Longhi, Peixiang Lu. 2025-06-21. Nonlinear Non-Hermitian Skin Effect and Skin Solitons in Temporal Photonic Feedforward Lattices. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevlett.134.243805

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