Observation of exceptional points in anisotropic ReS2 microcavities

doi:10.1088/1674-1056/ae48c8

Abstract Exceptional points (EPs) are spectral singularities in non-Hermitian systems where eigenvalues and eigenvectors simultaneously coalesce. Manipulating EPs in solid-state systems typically requires complex architectures. Here, based on a hybrid system consisted of few-layer rhenium disulfide (ReS$_{2}$) deposited on a distributed Bragg mirror, we demonstrate an all-optical method to dynamically control EPs by harnessing the intrinsic optical anisotropy of ReS$_{2}$. By utilizing the incident polarization angle as a dynamic control parameter, we continuously modulate the exciton-photon coupling strength, driving the system from the strong coupling regime to the weak coupling regime. The EPs are manifested as simultaneous coalescence of the real (energy) and imaginary (linewidth) parts of the complex eigenvalues. This dual-degeneracy provides unambiguous experimental evidence for EP formation and the associated collapse of the Hilbert space dimensionality. Our findings establish anisotropic light-matter coupled systems as a robust paradigm for exploring non-Hermitian topology in photonics, enabling polarization-driven topological devices without intricate nanofabrication.

Keywords: exciton-polariton non-Hermitian physics exceptional points optical anisotropy

Received: 17 January 2026
Revised: 19 February 2026
Accepted manuscript online: 23 February 2026

PACS:	71.36.+c	(Polaritons (including photon-phonon and photon-magnon interactions))
	03.65.Vf	(Phases: geometric; dynamic or topological)
	78.67.-n	(Optical properties of low-dimensional, mesoscopic, and nanoscale materials and structures)
	42.25.Ja	(Polarization)

Fund: Project supported by the National Key R&D Program of China (Grant Nos. 2022YFA1206700, 2023YFA1407100, 2022YFA1204700, and 2023ZD0300300) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. W2541001, 12574079, 12304347, 12504373, 62175207, and 92250301).

Corresponding Authors: Long Zhang, Zhanghai Chen
E-mail: zhanglong@xmu.edu.cn;zhanghai@xmu.edu.cn

Cite this article:

Huihua Chen(陈辉华), Yuquan Zhou(周玉全), Xin Li(李昕), Jinyang Lou(娄金阳), Song Luo(罗松), Hang Zhou(周航), Xinyue Zhang(张新悦), Zhao Xu(徐钊), Yan Liu(刘艳), Zheng Lv(吕峥), Yuxin Duan(段雨欣), Haodong Cheng(成浩东), Hongming Zhang(张鸿铭), Yaofeng Zhu(朱耀峰), Anpeng Li(李安鹏), Jian Ren(任坚), Xiao Wang(王潇), Lixin Zhang(章立心), Long Zhang(张龙), and Zhanghai Chen(陈张海) Observation of exceptional points in anisotropic ReS₂ microcavities 2026 Chin. Phys. B 35 057105

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Observation of exceptional points in anisotropic ReS₂ microcavities