No Arabic abstract
Whether long-range interactions allow for a form of causality in non-relativistic quantum models remains an open question with far-reaching implications for the propagation of information and thermalization processes. Here, we study the out-of-equilibrium dynamics of the one-dimensional transverse Ising model with algebraic long-range exchange coupling. Using a state of the art tensor-network approach, complemented by analytic calculations and considering various observables, we show that a weak form of causality emerges, characterized by non-universal dynamical exponents. While the local spin and spin correlation causal edges are sub-ballistic, the causal region has a rich internal structure, which, depending on the observable, displays ballistic or super-ballistic features. In contrast, the causal region of entanglement entropy is featureless and its edge is always ballistic, irrespective of the interaction range. Our results shed light on the propagation of information in long-range interacting lattice models and pave the way to future experiments, which are discussed.
The non-equilibrium response of a quantum many-body system defines its fundamental transport properties and how initially localized quantum information spreads. However, for long-range-interacting quantum systems little is known. We address this issue by analyzing a local quantum quench in the long-range Ising model in a transverse field, where interactions decay as a variable power-law with distance $propto r^{-alpha}$, $alpha>0$. Using complementary numerical and analytical techniques, we identify three dynamical regimes: short-range-like with an emerging light cone for $alpha>2$; weakly long-range for $1<alpha<2$ without a clear light cone but with a finite propagation speed of almost all excitations; and fully non-local for $alpha<1$ with instantaneous transmission of correlations. This last regime breaks generalized Lieb--Robinson bounds and thus locality. Numerical calculation of the entanglement spectrum demonstrates that the usual picture of propagating quasi-particles remains valid, allowing an intuitive interpretation of our findings via divergences of quasi-particle velocities. Our results may be tested in state-of-the-art trapped-ion experiments.
Spin ensembles coupled to optical cavities provide a powerful platform for engineering synthetic quantum matter. Recently, we demonstrated that cavity mediated infinite range interactions can induce fast scrambling in a Heisenberg $XXZ$ spin chain (Phys. Rev. Research {bf 2}, 043399 (2020)). In this work, we analyze the kaleidoscope of quantum phases that emerge in this system from the interplay of these interactions. Employing both analytical spin-wave theory as well as numerical DMRG calculations, we find that there is a large parameter regime where the continuous $U(1)$ symmetry of this model is spontaneously broken and the ground state of the system exhibits $XY$ order. This kind of symmetry breaking and the consequent long range order is forbidden for short range interacting systems by the Mermin-Wagner theorem. Intriguingly, we find that the $XY$ order can be induced by even an infinitesimally weak infinite range interaction. Furthermore, we demonstrate that in the $U(1)$ symmetry broken phase, the half chain entanglement entropy violates the area law logarithmically. Finally, we discuss a proposal to verify our predictions in state-of-the-art quantum emulators.
We analyze the dynamics of periodically-driven (Floquet) Hamiltonians with short- and long-range interactions, finding clear evidence for a thermalization time, $tau^*$, that increases exponentially with the drive frequency. We observe this behavior, both in systems with short-ranged interactions, where our results are consistent with rigorous bounds, and in systems with long-range interactions, where such bounds do not exist at present. Using a combination of heating and entanglement dynamics, we explicitly extract the effective energy scale controlling the rate of thermalization. Finally, we demonstrate that for times shorter than $tau^*$, the dynamics of the system is well-approximated by evolution under a time-independent Hamiltonian $D_{mathrm{eff}}$, for both short- and long-range interacting systems.
We study the out-of-equilibrium dynamics of $p$-wave superconducting quantum wires with long-range interactions, when the chemical potential is linearly ramped across the topological phase transition. We show that the heat produced after the quench scales with the quench rate $delta$ according to the scaling law $delta^theta$, where the exponent $theta$ depends on the power law exponent of the long-range interactions. We identify the parameter regimes where this scaling can be cast in terms of the universal equilibrium critical exponents and can thus be understood within the Kibble-Zurek framework. When the electron hopping decays more slowly in space than pairing, it dominates the equilibrium scaling. Surprisingly, in this regime the dynamical critical behaviour arises only from paring and, thus, exhibits anomalous dynamical universality unrelated to equilibrium scaling. The discrepancy from the expected Kibble-Zurek scenario can be traced back to the presence of multiple universal terms in the equilibrium scaling functions of long-range interacting systems close to a second order critical point.
The approach to equilibrium is studied for long-range quantum Ising models where the interaction strength decays like r^{-alpha} at large distances r with an exponent $alpha$ not exceeding the lattice dimension. For a large class of observables and initial states, the time evolution of expectation values can be calculated. We prove analytically that, at a given instant of time t and for sufficiently large system size N, the expectation value of some observable <A>(t) will practically be unchanged from its initial value <A>(0). This finding implies that, for large enough N, equilibration effectively occurs on a time scale beyond the experimentally accessible one and will not be observed in practice.