Towards nanoscale multiplexing with parity-time-symmetric plasmonic coaxial waveguides

We theoretically investigate a nanoscale mode-division multiplexing scheme based on parity-time-(PT) symmetric coaxial plasmonic waveguides. Coaxial waveguides support paired degenerate modes corresponding to distinct orbital angular momentum states. PT-symmetric inclusions of gain and loss break the degeneracy of the paired modes and create new hybrid modes without definite orbital angular momentum. This process can be made thresholdless by matching the mode order with the number of gain and loss sections within the coaxial ring. Using both a Hamiltonian formulation and degenerate perturbation theory, we show how the wave vectors and fields evolve with increased loss/gain and derive sufficient conditions for thresholdless transitions. As a multiplexing filter, this PT-symmetric coaxial waveguide could help double density rates in on-chip nanophotonic networks.