Size-dependent dynamical instability of periodic $\mathcal{PT}$-symmetric scattering systems

Abstract

While periodic $\mathcal{PT}$-symmetric structures offer a versatile platform for wave tailoring, their scattering responses are typically analyzed using stationary methods that presume dynamical stability. This assumption fails when time-growing bound states emerge, signaling a dynamical instability. Here, we analytically derive the instability threshold for a $\mathcal{PT}$-symmetric chain of $N$ unit cells with gain/loss strength $γ$. Our $S$-matrix analysis yields a closed-form threshold, $γ_c = 2\sin[π/(4N)]$, which scales as $\mathcal{O}(1/N)$ and vanishes in the thermodynamic limit. Consequently, enlarging such structures to access richer stationary band phenomena paradoxically triggers instability at weaker gain/loss. As confirmed by time-domain simulations, exceeding $γ_c$ causes exponentially growing bound states to overwhelm the system, rendering standard Bloch-wave descriptions physically irrelevant. Evaluated against this size-dependent threshold, many hallmarks of large $\mathcal{PT}$-symmetric structures, including gain-loss-induced localization, reflectionless transport, and coherent perfect absorbers and lasers, are found to lie within the dynamically unstable regime. Our findings thus establish that physical transport in non-Hermitian periodic systems is governed by a fundamental interplay between stationary band theory and finite-size stability limits.