Harnessing Spectral Singularities in Non-Hermitian Cylindrical Structures

Non-Hermitian systems characterized by suitable spatial distributions of gain and loss can exhibit "spectral singularities" in the form of zero-width resonances associated with real-frequency poles in the scattering operator. Here, we study this intriguing phenomenon in connection with cylindrical geometries and explore possible applications to controlling and tailoring in unconventional ways the scattering response of subwavelength- and wavelength-sized objects. Among the possible implications and applications, we illustrate the additional degrees of freedom available in the scattering-absorption-extinction tradeoff and address the engineering of zero-forward scattering, transverse scattering, and gain-controlled reconfigurability of the scattering pattern, also paying attention to stability issues. Our results may open up new vistas in active and reconfigurable nanophotonics platforms.