Exceptional points and non-Hermitian photonics at the nanoscale

Exceptional points (EPs) arising in non-Hermitian systems have led to a variety of intriguing wave phenomena, and have been attracting increased interest in various physical platforms. In this Review, we highlight the latest fundamental advances in the context of EPs in various nanoscale systems, and overview the theoretical progress related to EPs, including higher-order EPs, bulk Fermi arcs and Weyl exceptional rings. We peek into EP-associated emerging technologies, in particular focusing on the influence of noise for sensing near EPs, improving the efficiency in asymmetric transmission based on EPs, optical isolators in nonlinear EP systems and novel concepts to implement EPs in topological photonics. We also discuss the constraints and limitations of the applications relying on EPs, and offer parting thoughts about promising ways to tackle them for advanced nanophotonic applications.