Exceptional, but Separate: Precursors to Spontaneous Symmetry Breaking

Exceptional, but Separate: Precursors to Spontaneous Symmetry Breaking | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Exceptional, but Separate: Precursors to Spontaneous Symmetry Breaking Lewis Hill, Julius Gohsrich, Alekhya Ghosh, Jacob Fauman, Pascal Del'Haye, and 1 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-6596160/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 14 Jan, 2026 Read the published version in Communications Physics → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Spontaneous symmetry breaking (SSB) and exceptional points (EPs) are often assumed to be inherently linked. Here we investigate the intricate relationship between SSB and specific classes of EPs across three distinct, real-world scenarios in nonlinear optics. In these systems, the two phenomena do not coincide for all classes of EPs; they can occur at dislocated points in parameter space. This recurring behavior across disparate platforms implies that such decoupling is not unique to these optical systems, but likely reflects a more general principle. Our results highlight the need for careful analysis of assumed correlations between SSB and EPs in both theoretical and applied contexts. They deepen our understanding of nonlinear dynamics in optical systems and prompt a broader reconsideration of contexts where EPs and SSB are thought to be interdependent. Physical sciences/Optics and photonics/Optical physics/Nonlinear optics Physical sciences/Physics/Optical physics/Nonlinear optics Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 14 Jan, 2026 Read the published version in Communications Physics → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-6596160","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":456223114,"identity":"5b5e4d31-db19-486c-8c1b-700ec59b53e7","order_by":0,"name":"Lewis Hill","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA7UlEQVRIiWNgGAWjYBACPiA+AEQ8fOzMQLoAIiqBTwsbTAsbM1sCA4MBkVrAutiYeQyI1MLeY3jwB8MdGaCWr5sLDBiizfkXMN74gE8LzxmDwzwMz4AO4912e4YBQ+7OGQ+YLWfg0yKRu+EwA8NhiBag23I33DjAJs2DT4v82w1Ah4G08DxDaPmD1xbeDQd4IFrYIFrON7BJ4/U+T/6HwzwGIC1sZkC/SAD9wths2YNHCz/7seSPPyoO2/OzNz+7XVBhk7ud//DBGz/wWQMG0OhgBsWIgURiA0ENcMAM1s5/gHgdo2AUjIJRMCIAAKd4R4EXB4xDAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7670-0183","institution":"Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Lewis","middleName":"","lastName":"Hill","suffix":""},{"id":456223115,"identity":"1bdcffdd-48d6-4139-a545-c3c2fc8d0816","order_by":1,"name":"Julius Gohsrich","email":"","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6725-2171","institution":"Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Julius","middleName":"","lastName":"Gohsrich","suffix":""},{"id":456223116,"identity":"f3905512-d67d-47c2-8b40-33c2936ba575","order_by":2,"name":"Alekhya Ghosh","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Alekhya","middleName":"","lastName":"Ghosh","suffix":""},{"id":456223117,"identity":"ae6fb3fb-4ac2-4add-acae-6eb319c98a66","order_by":3,"name":"Jacob Fauman","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Jacob","middleName":"","lastName":"Fauman","suffix":""},{"id":456223118,"identity":"7d12b3bf-f31c-4f00-8bba-28ca7a393bd0","order_by":4,"name":"Pascal Del'Haye","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Pascal","middleName":"","lastName":"Del'Haye","suffix":""},{"id":456223119,"identity":"816b3d79-99dd-4a4d-b1cb-da1d9641b38e","order_by":5,"name":"Flore Kunst","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Flore","middleName":"","lastName":"Kunst","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-05-05 16:26:44","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6596160/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-6596160/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[{"content":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s42005-026-02491-0","type":"published","date":"2026-01-14T05:00:00+00:00"}],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":102575538,"identity":"ea632712-54e0-4942-be2a-a69e6ae7e1de","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-02-13 08:11:41","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":1586556,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"Article File","description":"","filename":"EParXiv.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6596160/v1_covered_800ee16d-593a-4d80-b419-0a9b10755246.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"There is \u003cb\u003eNO\u003c/b\u003e Competing Interest.","formattedTitle":"Exceptional, but Separate: Precursors to Spontaneous Symmetry Breaking","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":true,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"nature-portfolio","isNatureJournal":true,"hasQc":false,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"","title":"Nature Portfolio","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":false,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"ejp","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false},"keywords":"","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6596160/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-6596160/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"Spontaneous symmetry breaking (SSB) and exceptional points (EPs) are often assumed to be inherently linked. 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