Grad Student Seminar with Jacob Barnett

Abstract

Jacob Barnett, Perimeter Institute

Locality and Exceptional Points in Pseudo-Hermitian Physics

This talk discusses the role of non-Hermitian operators in fundamental and effective theories of physics. An implicit assumption of the tensor product model of locality is that the inner product factorizes with the tensor product. Quasi-Hermitian quantum frameworks can be used to lift this assumption while preserving the reality of spectra and unitarity. After characterizing local observable algebras and expectation values, I will examine Bell's inequality and its generalizations, the nonlocal games, in the setting of quasi-Hermitian theories. Pseudo-Hermitian operators characterize systems with time-reversal symmetry. These operators exhibit rich perturbative and symmetry-breaking properties that are unparalleled in the Hermitian regime. I will convey some geometric and topological aspects of these features, with emphasis placed on non-interacting many-body systems.