Solvable dilation model of $\cal PT$-symmetric systems

Abstract

The dilation method is a practical way to experimentally simulate non-Hermitian, especially $\cal PT$-symmetric quantum systems. However, the time-dependent dilation problem cannot be explicitly solved in general. In this paper, we present a simple yet non-trivial exactly solvable dilation problem with two dimensional time-dependent $\cal PT$-symmetric Hamiltonian. Our system is initially set in the unbroken $\cal PT$-symmetric phase and later goes across the so-called exceptional point and enters the broken $\cal PT$-symmetric phase. For this system, the dilated Hamiltonian and the evolution of $\cal PT$-symmetric system are analytically worked out. Our result clearly showed that the exceptional points do not have much physical relevance in a \textit{time-dependent} system.