Quantum graphs and microwave networks as narrow-band filters for quantum and microwave devices.

We investigate properties of the transmission amplitude of quantum graphs and microwave networks composed of regular polygons such as triangles and squares. We show that for the graphs composed of regular polygons, with the edges of the length l, the transmission amplitude displays a band of transmission suppression with some narrow peaks of full transmission. The peaks are distributed symmetrically with respect to the symmetry axis kl=π, where k is the wave vector. For microwave networks the transmission peak amplitudes are reduced and their symmetry is broken due to the influence of internal absorption. We demonstrate that for the graphs composed of the same polygons but separated by the edges of length l^{'}

Experimental study of the elastic enhancement factor in a three-dimensional wave-chaotic microwave resonator exhibiting strongly overlapping resonances.

We study the elastic enhancement factor and the two-point correlation function of the scattering matrix obtained from measurements of reflection and transmission spectra of a three-dimensional (3D) wave-chaotic microwave cavity in regions of moderate and large absorption. They are used to identify the degree of chaoticity of the system in the presence of strongly overlapping resonances, where other measures such as short- and long-range level correlations cannot be applied. The average value of the experimentally determined elastic enhancement factor for two scattering channels agrees well with random-matrix theory predictions for quantum chaotic systems, thus corroborating that the 3D microwave cavity exhibits the features of a fully chaotic system with preserved time-reversal invariance. To confirm this finding we analyzed spectral properties in the frequency range of lowest achievable absorption using missing-level statistics.

Distributions of the Wigner reaction matrix for microwave networks with symplectic symmetry in the presence of absorption.

We report on experimental studies of the distribution of the reflection coefficients, and the imaginary and real parts of Wigner's reaction (K) matrix employing open microwave networks with symplectic symmetry and varying size of absorption. The results are compared to analytical predictions derived for the single-channel scattering case within the framework of random-matrix theory (RMT). Furthermore, we performed Monte Carlo simulations based on the Heidelberg approach for the scattering (S) and K matrix of open quantum-chaotic systems and the two-point correlation function of the S-matrix elements. The analytical results and the Monte Carlo simulations depend on the size of absorption. To verify them, we performed experiments with microwave networks for various absorption strengths. We show that deviations from RMT predictions observed in the spectral properties of the corresponding closed quantum graph and attributed to the presence of nonuniversal short periodic orbits does not have any visible effects on the distributions of the reflection coefficients and the K and S matrices associated with the corresponding open quantum graph.

The Generalized Euler Characteristics of the Graphs Split at Vertices.

We show that there is a relationship between the generalized Euler characteristic Eo(|VDo|) of the original graph that was split at vertices into two disconnected subgraphs i=1,2 and their generalized Euler characteristics Ei(|VDi|). Here, |VDo| and |VDi| denote the numbers of vertices with the Dirichlet boundary conditions in the graphs. The theoretical results are experimentally verified using microwave networks that simulate quantum graphs. We demonstrate that the evaluation of the generalized Euler characteristics Eo(|VDo|) and Ei(|VDi|) allow us to determine the number of vertices where the two subgraphs were initially connected.

Enhancement factor in the regime of semi-Poisson statistics in a singular microwave cavity.

We investigated properties of a singular billiard, that is, a quantum billiard which contains a pointlike (zero-range) perturbation. A singular billiard was simulated experimentally by a rectangular microwave flat resonator coupled to microwave power via wire antennas which act as singular scatterers. The departure from regularity was quantitatively estimated by the short-range plasma model in which the parameter η takes the values 1 and 2 for the Poisson and semi-Poisson statistics, respectively. We show that in the regime of semi-Poisson statistics the experimental power spectrum and the second nearest-neighbor-spacing distribution P(2,s) are in good agreement with their theoretical predictions. Furthermore, the measurement of the two-port scattering matrix allowed us to evaluate experimentally the enhancement factor F(γ^{tot}) in the regime of the semi-Poisson statistics as a function of the total absorption factor γ^{tot}. The experimental results were compared with the analytical formula for F(γ^{tot}) evaluated in this article. The agreement between the experiment and theory is good.

Delay-time distribution in the scattering of short Gaussian pulses in microwave networks.

We investigate delay-time distributions in the scattering of short Gaussian pulses in microwave networks which simulate quantum graphs. We show that in the limit of short delay times the delay-time distribution is very sensitive to the internal structure of the networks. Therefore, it can be used to reveal their local structure including the boundary conditions at the vertices of the networks. In the frequency domain the pulses comprise many resonance frequencies of the networks. Furthermore, we show that the time-delay distribution averaged over different internal configurations of a finite network decays exponentially. Our experimental results for four-vertex and isoscattering microwave networks are in very good agreement with the theoretical ones obtained from the modified theory of U. Smilansky and H. Schanz [J. Phys. A 51, 075302 (2018)1751-811310.1088/1751-8121/aaa0df]. We modified the theory to account for internal absorption of microwave networks.

A new spectral invariant for quantum graphs.

The Euler characteristic i.e., the difference between the number of vertices |V| and edges |E| is the most important topological characteristic of a graph. However, to describe spectral properties of differential equations with mixed Dirichlet and Neumann vertex conditions it is necessary to introduce a new spectral invariant, the generalized Euler characteristic [Formula: see text], with [Formula: see text] denoting the number of Dirichlet vertices. We demonstrate theoretically and experimentally that the generalized Euler characteristic [Formula: see text] of quantum graphs and microwave networks can be determined from small sets of lowest eigenfrequencies. If the topology of the graph is known, the generalized Euler characteristic [Formula: see text] can be used to determine the number of Dirichlet vertices. That makes the generalized Euler characteristic [Formula: see text] a new powerful tool for studying of physical systems modeled by differential equations on metric graphs including isoscattering and neural networks where both Neumann and Dirichlet boundary conditions occur.

Missing-level statistics in a dissipative microwave resonator with partially violated time-reversal invariance.

We report on the experimental investigation of the fluctuation properties in the resonance frequency spectra of a flat resonator simulating a dissipative quantum billiard subject to partial time-reversal-invariance violation (TIV) which is induced by two magnetized ferrites. The cavity has the shape of a quarter bowtie billiard of which the corresponding classical dynamics is chaotic. Due to dissipation it is impossible to identify a complete list of resonance frequencies. Based on a random-matrix theory approach we derive analytical expressions for statistical measures of short- and long-range correlations in such incomplete spectra interpolating between the cases of preserved time-reversal invariance and complete TIV and demonstrate their applicability to the experimental spectra.

Application of topological resonances in experimental investigation of a Fermi golden rule in microwave networks.

We investigate experimentally a Fermi golden rule in two-edge and five-edge microwave networks with preserved time reversal invariance. A Fermi golden rule gives rates of decay of states obtained by perturbing embedded eigenvalues of graphs and networks. We show that the embedded eigenvalues are connected with the topological resonances of the analyzed systems and we find the trajectories of the topological resonances on the complex plane.

Isoscattering strings of concatenating graphs and networks.

We identify and investigate isoscattering strings of concatenating quantum graphs possessing n units and 2n infinite external leads. We give an insight into the principles of designing large graphs and networks for which the isoscattering properties are preserved for [Formula: see text]. The theoretical predictions are confirmed experimentally using [Formula: see text] units, four-leads microwave networks. In an experimental and mathematical approach our work goes beyond prior results by demonstrating that using a trace function one can address the unsettled until now problem of whether scattering properties of open complex graphs and networks with many external leads are uniquely connected to their shapes. The application of the trace function reduces the number of required entries to the [Formula: see text] scattering matrices [Formula: see text] of the systems to 2n diagonal elements, while the old measures of isoscattering require all [Formula: see text] entries. The studied problem generalizes a famous question of Mark Kac "Can one hear the shape of a drum?", originally posed in the case of isospectral dissipationless systems, to the case of infinite strings of open graphs and networks.

Experimental investigation of distributions of the off-diagonal elements of the scattering matrix and Wigner's K[over ̂] matrix for networks with broken time reversal invariance.

We present an extensive experimental study of the distributions of the real and imaginary parts of the off-diagonal elements of the scattering matrix S[over ̂] and the Wigner's reaction K[over ̂] matrix for open microwave networks with broken time (T) reversal invariance. Microwave Faraday circulators were applied in order to break T invariance. The experimental distributions of the real and imaginary parts of the off-diagonal entries of the scattering matrix S[over ̂] are compared with the theoretical predictions from the supersymmetry random matrix theory [A. Nock, S. Kumar, H.-J. Sommers, and T. Guhr, Ann. Phys. (NY) 342, 103 (2014)10.1016/j.aop.2013.11.006]. Furthermore, we show that the experimental results are in very good agreement with the recent predictions for the distributions of the real and imaginary parts of the off-diagonal elements of the Wigner's reaction K[over ̂] matrix obtained within the framework of the Gaussian unitary ensemble of random matrix theory [S. B. Fedeli and Y. V. Fyodorov, J. Phys. A: Math. Theor. 53, 165701 (2020)1751-811310.1088/1751-8121/ab73ab]. Both theories include losses as tunable parameters and are therefore well adapted to the experimental verification.

How time-reversal-invariance violation leads to enhanced backscattering with increasing openness of a wave-chaotic system.

We report on the experimental investigation of the dependence of the elastic enhancement, i.e., enhancement of scattering in the backward direction over scattering in other directions, of a wave-chaotic system with partially violated time-reversal (T) invariance on its openness. The elastic enhancement factor is a characteristic of quantum chaotic scattering which is of particular importance in experiments, like compound-nuclear reactions, where only cross sections, i.e., the moduli of the associated scattering matrix elements, are accessible. In the experiment a quantum billiard with the shape of a quarter bow tie, which generates a chaotic dynamics, is emulated by a flat microwave cavity. Partial T-invariance violation of varying strength 0≤ξ≲1 is induced by two magnetized ferrites. The openness is controlled by increasing the number M of open channels, 2≤M≤9, while keeping the internal absorption unchanged. We investigate the elastic enhancement as function of ξ and find that for a fixed M it decreases with increasing T-invariance violation, whereas it increases with increasing openness beyond a certain value of ξ≳0.2. The latter result is surprising because it is opposite to that observed in systems with preserved Tinvariance (ξ=0). We come to the conclusion that the effect of T-invariance violation on the elastic enhancement then dominates over the openness, which is crucial for experiments which rely on enhanced backscattering, since, generally, a decrease of the openness is unfeasible. Motivated by these experimental results, we performed theoretical investigations based on random matrix theory which confirm our findings.

Edge switch transformation in microwave networks.

We investigated the spectra of resonances of four-vertex microwave networks simulating both quantum graphs with preserved and with partially violated time-reversal invariance before and after an edge switch operation. We show experimentally that under the edge switch operation, the spectra of the microwave networks with preserved time-reversal symmetry are level-1 interlaced, i.e., ν_{n-r}≤ν[over ̃]_{n}≤ν_{n+r}, where r=1, in agreement with the recent theoretical predictions of Aizenman et al. [M. Aizenman, H. Schanz, U. Smilansky, and S. Warzel, Acta Phys. Pol. A 132, 1699 (2017)ATPLB60587-424610.12693/APhysPolA.132.1699]. Here, we denote by {ν_{n}}_{n=1}^{∞} and {ν[over ̃]_{n}}_{n=1}^{∞} the spectra of microwave networks before and after the edge switch transformation. We demonstrate that the experimental distribution P(ΔN) of the spectral shift ΔN is close to the theoretical one. Furthermore, we show experimentally that in the case of the four-vertex networks with partially violated time-reversal symmetry, the spectra are level-1 interlaced. Our experimental results are supplemented by the numerical calculations performed for quantum graphs with violated time-reversal symmetry. In this case, the edge switch transformation also leads to the spectra which are level-1 interlaced. Moreover, we demonstrate that for microwave networks simulating graphs with violated time-reversal symmetry, the experimental distribution P(ΔN) of the spectral shift ΔN agrees, within the experimental uncertainty, with the numerical one.

Hearing Euler characteristic of graphs.

The Euler characteristic χ=|V|-|E| and the total length L are the most important topological and geometrical characteristics of a metric graph. Here |V| and |E| denote the number of vertices and edges of a graph. The Euler characteristic determines the number ß of independent cycles in a graph while the total length determines the asymptotic behavior of the energy eigenvalues via Weyl's law. We show theoretically and confirm experimentally that the Euler characteristic can be determined (heard) from a finite sequence of the lowest eigenenergies λ_{1},...,λ_{N} of a simple quantum graph, without any need to inspect the system visually. In the experiment quantum graphs are simulated by microwave networks. We demonstrate that the sequence of the lowest resonances of microwave networks with ß≤3 can be directly used in determining whether a network is planar, i.e., can be embedded in the plane. Moreover, we show that the measured Euler characteristic χ can be used as a sensitive revealer of the fully connected graphs.

Experimental investigation of the elastic enhancement factor in a microwave cavity emulating a chaotic scattering system with varying openness.

A characteristic of chaotic scattering is the excess of elastic over inelastic scattering processes quantified by the elastic enhancement factor F_{M}(T,γ), which depends on the number of open channels M, the average transmission coefficient T, and internal absorption γ. Using a microwave cavity with the shape of a chaotic quarter-bow-tie billiard, we study the elastic enhancement factor experimentally as a function of the openness, which is defined as the ratio of the Heisenberg time and the Weisskopf (dwell) time and is directly related to M and the size of internal absorption. In the experiments 2≤M≤9 open channels with an average transmission coefficient 0.34

Non-Weyl Microwave Graphs.

One of the most important characteristics of a quantum graph is the average density of resonances, ρ=(L/π), where L denotes the length of the graph. This is a very robust measure. It does not depend on the number of vertices in a graph and holds also for most of the boundary conditions at the vertices. Graphs obeying this characteristic are called Weyl graphs. Using microwave networks that simulate quantum graphs we show that there exist graphs that do not adhere to this characteristic. Such graphs are called non-Weyl graphs. For standard coupling conditions we demonstrate that the transition from a Weyl graph to a non-Weyl graph occurs if we introduce a balanced vertex. A vertex of a graph is called balanced if the numbers of infinite leads and internal edges meeting at a vertex are the same. Our experimental results confirm the theoretical predictions of [E. B. Davies and A. Pushnitski, Analysis and PDE 4, 729 (2011)] and are in excellent agreement with the numerical calculations yielding the resonances of the networks.

Investigation of the diagonal elements of the Wigner's reaction matrix for networks with violated time reversal invariance.

The distributions of the diagonal elements of the Wigner's reaction [Formula: see text] matrix for open systems with violated time reversal T invariance in the case of large absorption are for the first time experimentally studied. The Wigner's reaction matrix links the properties of chaotic systems with the scattering processes in the asymptotic region. Microwave networks consisting of microwave circulators were used in the experiment to simulate quantum graphs with violated T invariance. The distributions of the diagonal elements of the reaction [Formula: see text] matrix were experimentally evaluated by measuring of the two-port scattering matrix [Formula: see text]. The violation of T invariance in the networks with large absorption was demonstrated by calculating the enhancement factor W of the matrix [Formula: see text]. Our experimental results are in very good agreement with the analytic ones attained for the Gaussian unitary ensemble in the random matrix theory. The obtained results suggest that the distributions P(ʋ) and P(u) of the imaginary and the real parts of the diagonal elements of the Wigner's reaction [Formula: see text] matrix together with the enhancement factor W can be used as a powerful tool for identification of systems with violated T symmetry and quantification of their absorption.

Missing-level statistics and analysis of the power spectrum of level fluctuations of three-dimensional chaotic microwave cavities.

We present an experimental study of missing-level statistics of three-dimensional chaotic microwave cavities. The investigation is reinforced by the power spectrum of level fluctuations analysis, which also takes into account the missing levels. On the basis of our data sets we demonstrate that the power spectrum of level fluctuations in combination with short- and long-range spectral fluctuations provides a powerful tool for the determination of the fraction of randomly missing levels in systems that display wave chaos such as the three-dimensional chaotic microwave cavities. The experimental results are in good agreement with the analytical expressions that explicitly take into account the fraction of observed levels φ. We also show that in the case of incomplete spectra with many unresolved states the above procedures may fail. In such a case the random matrix theory calculations can be useful for the determination of missing levels.

Nonuniversality in the spectral properties of time-reversal-invariant microwave networks and quantum graphs.

We present experimental and numerical results for the long-range fluctuation properties in the spectra of quantum graphs with chaotic classical dynamics and preserved time-reversal invariance. Such systems are generally believed to provide an ideal basis for the experimental study of problems originating from the field of quantum chaos and random matrix theory. Our objective is to demonstrate that this is true only for short-range fluctuation properties in the spectra, whereas the observation of deviations in the long-range fluctuations is typical for quantum graphs. This may be attributed to the unavoidable occurrence of short periodic orbits, which explore only the individual bonds forming a graph and thus do not sense the chaoticity of its dynamics. In order to corroborate our supposition, we performed numerous experimental and corresponding numerical studies of long-range fluctuations in terms of the number variance and the power spectrum. Furthermore, we evaluated length spectra and compared them to semiclassical ones obtained from the exact trace formula for quantum graphs.

Long-range correlations in rectangular cavities containing pointlike perturbations.

We investigated experimentally the short- and long-range correlations in the fluctuations of the resonance frequencies of flat, rectangular microwave cavities that contained antennas acting as pointlike perturbations. We demonstrate that their spectral properties exhibit the features typical for singular statistics. Hitherto, only the nearest-neighbor spacing distribution had been studied. In addition we considered statistical measures for the long-range correlations and analyzed power spectra. Thereby we could corroborate that the spectral properties change to semi-Poisson statistic with increasing microwave frequency. Furthermore, the experimental results are shown to be well described by a model applicable to billiards containing a zero-range perturbation [T. Tudorovskiy et al., New J. Phys. 12, 123021 (2010)NJOPFM1367-263010.1088/1367-2630/12/12/123021].