Dr Berislav Buca

Abstract:

The assumption that physical systems relax to a stationary state in the long-time limit underpins statistical physics and much of our intuitive understanding of scientific phenomena. For isolated systems this follows from the eigenstate thermalization hypothesis. When an environment is present the expectation is that all of phase space is explored, eventually leading to stationarity. Notable exceptions are decoherence-free subspaces that have important implications for quantum technologies. These have been studied for systems with a few degrees of freedom only. Here we identify simple and generic conditions for dissipation to prevent a quantum many-body system from ever reaching a stationary state. We go beyond dissipative quantum state engineering approaches towards controllable long-time non-stationary dynamics typically associated with macroscopic complex systems. This coherent and oscillatory evolution constitutes a dissipative version of a quantum time-crystal. We discuss the possibility of engineering such complex dynamics with fermionic ultracold atoms in optical lattices.

Abstract:

Is a spontaneous perpetual reversal of the arrow of time possible? The out-of-time-ordered correlator (OTOC) is a standard measure of irreversibility, quantum scrambling, and the arrow of time. The question may be thus formulated more precisely and conveniently: can spatially ordered perpetual OTOC oscillations exist in many-body systems? Here we give a rigorous lower bound on the amplitude of OTOC oscillations in terms of a strictly local dynamical algebra allowing for identification of systems that are out-of-time-ordered (OTO) crystals. While OTOC oscillations are possible for few-body systems, due to the spatial order requirement OTO crystals cannot be achieved by effective single or few body dynamics, e.g., a pendulum or a condensate. Rather they signal perpetual motion of quantum scrambling. It is likewise shown that if a Hamiltonian satisfies this novel algebra, it has an exponentially large number of local invariant subspaces, i.e., Hilbert space fragmentation. Crucially, the algebra, and hence the OTO crystal, are stable to local unitary and dissipative perturbations. A Creutz ladder is shown to be an OTO crystal, which thus perpetually reverses its arrow of time.

Abstract:

Explaining quantum many-body dynamics is a long-held goal of physics. A rigorous operator algebraic theory of dynamics in locally interacting systems in any dimension is provided here in terms of time-dependent equilibrium (Gibbs) ensembles. The theory explains dynamics in closed, open, and time-dependent systems, provided that relevant pseudolocal quantities can be identified, and time-dependent Gibbs ensembles unify wide classes of quantum nonergodic and ergodic systems. The theory is applied to quantum many-body scars, continuous, discrete, and dissipative time crystals, Hilbert space fragmentation, lattice gauge theories, and disorder-free localization, among other cases. Novel pseudolocal classes of operators are introduced in the process: projected-local, which are local only for some states, cryptolocal, whose locality is not manifest in terms of any finite number of local densities, and transient ones, that dictate finite-time relaxation dynamics. An immediate corollary is proving saturation of the Mazur bound for the Drude weight. This proven theory is intuitively the rigorous algebraic counterpart of the weak eigenstate thermalization hypothesis and has deep implications for thermodynamics: Quantum many-body systems “out of equilibrium” are actually always in a time-dependent equilibrium state for any natural initial state. The work opens the possibility of designing novel out-of-equilibrium phases, with the newly identified scarring and fragmentation phase transitions being examples.

Abstract:

Synchronization is a phenomenon where interacting particles lock their motion and display non-trivial dynamics. Despite intense efforts studying synchronization in systems without clear classical limits, no comprehensive theory has been found. We develop such a general theory based on novel necessary and sufficient algebraic criteria for persistently oscillating eigenmodes (limit cycles) of time-independent quantum master equations. We show these eigenmodes must be quantum coherent and give an exact analytical solution for all such dynamics in terms of a dynamical symmetry algebra. Using our theory, we study both stable synchronization and metastable/transient synchronization. We use our theory to fully characterise spontaneous synchronization of autonomous systems. Moreover, we give compact algebraic criteria that may be used to prove absence of synchronization. We demonstrate synchronization in several systems relevant for various fermionic cold atom experiments.

Abstract:

We demonstrate analytically and numerically that the paradigmatic model of quantum magnetism, the Heisenberg XXZ spin chain, does not equilibrate. It constitutes an example of persistent nonstationarity in a quantum many-body system that does not rely on external driving or coupling to an environment. We trace this phenomenon to the existence of extensive dynamical symmetries. We discuss how the ensuing persistent oscillations that seemingly violate one of the most fundamental laws of physics could be observed experimentally.