The Interplay of Localization and Interactions in Quantum Many-body Systems

The Interplay of Localization and Interactions in Quantum Many-body Systems
Author: Shankar Iyer
Publisher:
Total Pages: 470
Release: 2013
Genre: Electronic dissertations
ISBN:

Disorder and interactions both play crucial roles in quantum transport. Decades ago, Mott showed that electron-electron interactions can lead to insulating behavior in materials that conventional band theory predicts to be conducting. Soon thereafter, Anderson demonstrated that disorder can localize a quantum particle through the wave interference phenomenon of Anderson localization. Although interactions and disorder both separately induce insulating behavior, the interplay of these two ingredients is subtle and often leads to surprising behavior at the periphery of our current understanding. Modern experiments probe these phenomena in a variety of contexts (e.g. disordered superconductors, cold atoms, photonic waveguides, etc.); thus, theoretical and numerical advancements are urgently needed. In this thesis, we report progress on understanding two contexts in which the interplay of disorder and interactions is especially important. The first is the so-called "dirty" or random boson problem. In the past decade, a strong-disorder renormalization group (SDRG) treatment by Altman, Kafri, Polkovnikov, and Refael has raised the possibility of a new unstable fixed point governing the superfluid-insulator transition in the one-dimensional dirty boson problem. This new critical behavior may take over from the weak-disorder criticality of Giamarchi and Schulz when disorder is sufficiently strong. We analytically determine the scaling of the superfluid susceptibility at the strong-disorder fixed point and connect our analysis to recent Monte Carlo simulations by Hrahsheh and Vojta. We then shift our attention to two dimensions and use a numerical implementation of the SDRG to locate the fixed point governing the superfluid-insulator transition there. We identify several universal properties of this transition, which are fully independent of the microscopic features of the disorder. The second focus of this thesis is the interplay of localization and interactions in systems with high energy density (i.e., far from the usual low energy limit of condensed matter physics). Recent theoretical and numerical work indicates that localization can survive in this regime, provided that interactions are sufficiently weak. Stronger interactions can destroy localization, leading to a so-called many-body localization transition. This dynamical phase transition is relevant to questions of thermalization in isolated quantum systems: it separates a many-body localized phase, in which localization prevents transport and thermalization, from a conducting ("ergodic") phase in which the usual assumptions of quantum statistical mechanics hold. Here, we present evidence that many-body localization also occurs in quasiperiodic systems that lack true disorder.

Manipulating Quantum Systems

Manipulating Quantum Systems
Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 315
Release: 2020-09-14
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0309499542

The field of atomic, molecular, and optical (AMO) science underpins many technologies and continues to progress at an exciting pace for both scientific discoveries and technological innovations. AMO physics studies the fundamental building blocks of functioning matter to help advance the understanding of the universe. It is a foundational discipline within the physical sciences, relating to atoms and their constituents, to molecules, and to light at the quantum level. AMO physics combines fundamental research with practical application, coupling fundamental scientific discovery to rapidly evolving technological advances, innovation and commercialization. Due to the wide-reaching intellectual, societal, and economical impact of AMO, it is important to review recent advances and future opportunities in AMO physics. Manipulating Quantum Systems: An Assessment of Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Physics in the United States assesses opportunities in AMO science and technology over the coming decade. Key topics in this report include tools made of light; emerging phenomena from few- to many-body systems; the foundations of quantum information science and technologies; quantum dynamics in the time and frequency domains; precision and the nature of the universe, and the broader impact of AMO science.

Many-Body Quantum Theory in Condensed Matter Physics

Many-Body Quantum Theory in Condensed Matter Physics
Author: Henrik Bruus
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 458
Release: 2004-09-02
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0198566336

The book is an introduction to quantum field theory applied to condensed matter physics. The topics cover modern applications in electron systems and electronic properties of mesoscopic systems and nanosystems. The textbook is developed for a graduate or advanced undergraduate course with exercises which aim at giving students the ability to confront real problems.

Many-body Localization of Two-dimensional Disordered Bosons

Many-body Localization of Two-dimensional Disordered Bosons
Author: Giulio Bertoli
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2019
Genre:
ISBN:

The study of the interplay between localization and interactions in disordered quantum systems led to the discovery of the interesting physics of many-body localization (MBL). This remarkable phenomenon provides a generic mechanism for the breaking of ergodicity in quantum isolated systems, and has stimulated several questions such as the possibility of a finite-temperature fluid-insulator transition. At the same time, the domain of ultracold interacting atoms is a rapidly growing field in the physics of disordered quantum systems. In this thesis, we study many-body localization in the context of two-dimensional disordered ultracold bosons. After reviewing some importance concepts, we present a study of the phase diagram of a two-dimensional weakly interacting Bose gas in a random potential at finite temperatures. The system undergoes two finite-temperature transitions: the MBL transition from normal fluid to insulator and the Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless transition from algebraic superfluid to normal fluid. At T=0, we show the existence of a tricritical point where the three phases coexist. We also discuss the influence of the truncation of the energy distribution function at the trap barrier, a generic phenomenon for ultracold atoms. The truncation limits the growth of the localization length with energy and, in contrast to the thermodynamic limit, the insulator phase is present at any temperature. Finally, we conclude by discussing the stability of the insulating phase with respect to highly energetic particles in systems defined on a continuum.

Physics Of Quantum Information, The - Proceedings Of The 28th Solvay Conference On Physics

Physics Of Quantum Information, The - Proceedings Of The 28th Solvay Conference On Physics
Author: David J Gross
Publisher: World Scientific
Total Pages: 346
Release: 2023-03-16
Genre: Science
ISBN: 981127486X

Ever since 1911, the Solvay Conferences have shaped modern physics. The format is quite different from other conferences as the emphasis is placed on discussion. The 28th edition held in May 2022 in Brussels and chaired by David Gross and Peter Zoller continued this tradition and addressed some of the most pressing open questions in the fields of quantum information, gathering many of the leading figures working on a wide variety of profound problems.The proceedings contain the 'rapporteur talks' giving a broad overview with unique insights by distinguished renowned scientists. These lectures cover the five sessions: The Physics of Quantum Information, Many-Body Entanglement, Quantum Information and Spacetime, Quantum Platforms, Quantum Algorithms.In the Solvay tradition, the proceedings also include the prepared comments to the rapporteur talks. The discussions among the participants — expert, yet lively and sometimes contentious — have been edited to retain their flavor and are reproduced in full. The reader is taken on a breathtaking ride through a fascinating field which is expanding rapidly.

Laser Spectroscopy - Proceedings Of The Xix International Conference

Laser Spectroscopy - Proceedings Of The Xix International Conference
Author: Ken'ichi Nakagawa
Publisher: World Scientific
Total Pages: 324
Release: 2010-02-10
Genre: Science
ISBN: 9814467006

The XIX International Conference on Laser Spectroscopy, one of the leading conferences in the very diverse and still growing field of laser spectroscopy, was held in Hokkaido, Japan, on June 7-12, 2009. This volume, comprising a collection of invited contributions presented at the conference, will report on the latest developments in the area of laser spectroscopy and related fields: cold atoms and molecules, degenerate quantum gases, quantum optics, quantum information processing, precision measurements, atomic clock, ultra-fast lasers and strong field phenomena, and novel spectroscopic applications.

Dynamics of Quantum Many-body Systems with Long-range Interactions

Dynamics of Quantum Many-body Systems with Long-range Interactions
Author: Anton S. Buyskikh
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2017
Genre:
ISBN:

Constantly increasing experimental possibilities with strongly correlated systems of ultracold atoms in optical lattices and trapped ions make them one of the most promising candidates for quantum simulation and quantum computation in the near future, and open new opportunities for study many-body physics. Out-of-equilibrium properties of such complex systems present truly fascinating and rich physics, which is yet to be fully understood. This thesis studies many-body dynamics of quantum systems with long-range interactions and addresses a few distinct issues. The first one is related to a growing interest in the use of ultracold atoms in optical lattices to simulate condensed matter systems, in particular to understand their magnetic properties. In our project on tilted optical lattices we map the dynamics of bosonic particles with resonantly enhanced long-range tunnelings onto a spin chain with peculiar interaction terms. We study the novel properties of this system in and out of equilibrium. The second main topic is the dynamical growth of entanglement and spread of correlations between system partitions in quench experiments. Our investigation is based on current experiments with trapped ions, where the range of interactions can be tuned dynamically from almost neighboring to all-to-all. We analyze the role of this interaction range in non-equilibrium dynamics. The third topic we address is a new method of quantum state estimation, certified Matrix Product State (MPS) tomography, which has potential applications in regimes unreachable by full quantum state tomography. The investigation of quantum many-body systems often goes beyond analytically solvable models; that is where numerical simulations become vital. The majority of results in this thesis were obtained via the Density Matrix Renormalization Group (DMRG) methods in the context of the MPS and Matrix Product Operator(MPO) formalism. Further developing and optimizing these methods made it possible to obtain eigenstates and thermal states as well as to calculate the time dependent dynamics in quenches for experimentally relevant regimes.

Mathematical Problems in Quantum Physics

Mathematical Problems in Quantum Physics
Author: Federico Bonetto
Publisher: American Mathematical Soc.
Total Pages: 346
Release: 2018-10-24
Genre: Mathematics
ISBN: 1470436817

This volume contains the proceedings of the QMATH13: Mathematical Results in Quantum Physics conference, held from October 8–11, 2016, at the Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia. In recent years, a number of new frontiers have opened in mathematical physics, such as many-body localization and Schrödinger operators on graphs. There has been progress in developing mathematical techniques as well, notably in renormalization group methods and the use of Lieb–Robinson bounds in various quantum models. The aim of this volume is to provide an overview of some of these developments. Topics include random Schrödinger operators, many-body fermionic systems, atomic systems, effective equations, and applications to quantum field theory. A number of articles are devoted to the very active area of Schrödinger operators on graphs and general spectral theory of Schrödinger operators. Some of the articles are expository and can be read by an advanced graduate student.

Ultracold Atoms in Optical Lattices

Ultracold Atoms in Optical Lattices
Author: Maciej Lewenstein
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 494
Release: 2012-03-08
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0199573123

This book explores the physics of atoms frozen to ultralow temperatures and trapped in periodic light structures. It introduces the reader to the spectacular progress achieved on the field of ultracold gases and describes present and future challenges in condensed matter physics, high energy physics, and quantum computation.

50 Years of Anderson Localization

50 Years of Anderson Localization
Author: Elihu Abrahams
Publisher: World Scientific
Total Pages: 610
Release: 2010
Genre: Science
ISBN: 9814299065

This unique volume celebrates the five decades of the impact of Anderson localization on modern physics. In addition to the historical perspective on its origin, it provides a comprehensive description of the experimental and theoretical aspects of Anderson localization.