We show how to use polar molecules in an optical lattice to engineer quantum spin models with arbitrary spin $S\ensuremath{\ge}1/2$ and with interactions featuring a direction-dependent spin anisotropy. This is achieved by encoding the effective spin degrees of freedom in microwave-dressed rotational states of the molecules and by coupling the spins through dipolar interactions. We demonstrate how one of the experimentally most accessible anisotropies stabilizes symmetry protected topological phases in spin ladders. Using the numerically exact density matrix renormalization group method, we find that these interacting phases---previously studied only in the nearest-neighbor case---survive in the presence of long-range dipolar interactions. We also show how to use our approach to realize the bilinear-biquadratic spin-1 and the Kitaev honeycomb models. Experimental detection schemes and imperfections are discussed.
We show how to use polar molecules in an optical lattice to engineer quantum spin models with arbitrary spin S\ensuremath≥1/2 and with interactions featuring a direction-dependent spin anisotropy. This is achieved by encoding the effective spin degrees of freedom in microwave-dressed rotational states of the molecules and by coupling the spins through dipolar interactions. We demonstrate how one of the experimentally most accessible anisotropies stabilizes symmetry protected topological phases in spin ladders. Using the numerically exact density matrix renormalization group method, we find that these interacting phases---previously studied only in the nearest-neighbor case---survive in the presence of long-range dipolar interactions. We also show how to use our approach to realize the bilinear-biquadratic spin-1 and the Kitaev honeycomb models. Experimental detection schemes and imperfections are discussed.
By selecting two dressed rotational states of ultracold polar molecules in an optical lattice, we obtain a highly tunable generalization of the $t\mathrm{\text{\ensuremath{-}}}J$ model, which we refer to as the $t\mathrm{\text{\ensuremath{-}}}J\mathrm{\text{\ensuremath{-}}}V\mathrm{\text{\ensuremath{-}}}W$ model. In addition to XXZ spin exchange, the model features density-density interactions and density-spin interactions; all interactions are dipolar. We show that full control of all interaction parameters in both magnitude and sign can be achieved independently of each other and of the tunneling. As a first step towards demonstrating the potential of the system, we apply the density matrix renormalization group method to obtain the 1D phase diagram of the simplest experimentally realizable case. Specifically, we show that the tunability and the long-range nature of the interactions in the $t\mathrm{\text{\ensuremath{-}}}J\mathrm{\text{\ensuremath{-}}}V\mathrm{\text{\ensuremath{-}}}W$ model enable enhanced superfluidity. Finally, we show that Bloch oscillations in a tilted lattice can be used to probe the phase diagram experimentally.
We show that dipolar interactions between ultracold polar alkali-metal dimers in optical lattices can be used to realize a highly tunable generalization of the t-J model, which we refer to as the t-J-V-W model. The model features long-range spin-spin interactions Jz and ${J}_{\ensuremath{\perp}}$ of XXZ type, long-range density-density interaction V, and long-range density-spin interaction W, all of which can be controlled in both magnitude and sign independently of each other and of the tunneling t. The ``spin'' is encoded in the rotational degree of freedom of the molecules, while the interactions are controlled by applied static electric and continuous-wave microwave fields. Furthermore, we show that nuclear spins of the molecules can be used to implement an additional (orbital) degree of freedom that is coupled to the original rotational degree of freedom in a tunable way. The presented system is expected to exhibit exotic physics and to provide insights into strongly correlated phenomena in condensed-matter systems. Realistic experimental imperfections are discussed.
Ultracold atoms and molecules trapped in optical lattices are expected to serve as simulators of strongly correlated systems and topological states of matter. A fascinating example is to realize the Kitaev quantum spin liquid by using ultracold polar molecules. However, although experimental implementation of the Kitaev-type interaction was proposed, the stability of the Kitaev quantum spin liquid has not been fully investigated thus far. Here we study a quantum spin model with long-range angle-dependent Kitaev-type interactions proposed for the polar molecules, by the pseudofermion functional renormalization group method. We reveal that the ground state is magnetically ordered in both ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic models regardless of the spatial anisotropy of the interactions, while the isotropic case is most frustrated and closest to the realization of the Kitaev quantum spin liquid. Furthermore, by introducing a cutoff in the interaction range, we clarify how the Kitaev quantum spin liquid is destroyed by the long-range interactions. The results urge us to reconsider the feasibility of the Kitaev quantum spin liquid in ultracold polar molecules.
We show that ultracold polar molecules pinned in an optical lattice can be used to access a variety of exotic spin models, including the Kitaev honeycomb model. Treating each molecule as a rigid rotor, we use DC electric and microwave fields to define superpositions of rotational levels as effective spin degrees of freedom, while dipole–dipole interactions give rise to interactions between the spins. In particular, we show that, with sufficient microwave control, the interaction between two spins can be written as a sum of five independently controllable Hamiltonian terms proportional to the five rank-2 spherical harmonics Y 2, q (θ, φ), where (θ, φ) are the spherical coordinates of the vector connecting the two molecules. To demonstrate the potential of this approach beyond the simplest examples studied in [S.R. Manmana et al., Phys. Rev. B. 87, 081106 (2013)], we focus on the realisation of the Kitaev honeycomb model, which can support exotic non-Abelian anyonic excitations. We also discuss the possibility of generating spin Hamiltonians with arbitrary spin S, including those exhibiting SU(N=2S+1) symmetry.
There is growing interest to investigate states of matter with topological order, which support excitations in the form of anyons, and which underly topological quantum computing. Examples of such systems include lattice spin models in two dimensions. Here we show that relevant Hamiltonians can be systematically engineered with polar molecules stored in optical lattices, where the spin is represented by a single electron outside a closed shell of a heteronuclear molecule in its rotational ground state. Combining microwave excitation with the dipole-dipole interactions and spin-rotation couplings allows us to build a complete toolbox for effective two-spin interactions with designable range and spatial anisotropy, and with coupling strengths significantly larger than relevant decoherence rates. As an illustration we discuss two models: a 2D square lattice with an energy gap providing for protected quantum memory, and another on stacked triangular lattices leading to topological quantum computing.
We present a quantitative, near-term experimental blueprint for the quantum simulation of topological insulators using lattice-trapped ultracold polar molecules. In particular, we focus on the so-called Hopf insulator, which represents a three-dimensional topological state of matter existing outside the conventional tenfold way and crystalline-symmetry-based classifications of topological insulators. Its topology is protected by a linking number invariant, which necessitates long-range spin-orbit-coupled hoppings for its realization. While these ingredients have so far precluded its realization in solid-state systems and other quantum simulation architectures, in an accompanying Letter [T. Schuster et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 127, 015301 (2021)], we predict that Hopf insulators can arise naturally from the dipolar interaction. Here, we investigate a specific polar molecule architecture, where the effective ``spin'' is formed from sublattice degrees of freedom. We introduce two techniques that allow one to optimize dipolar Hopf insulators with large band gaps, and which should also be readily applicable to the simulation of other exotic band structures. First, we describe the use of Floquet engineering to control the range and functional form of dipolar hoppings and, second, we demonstrate that molecular AC polarizabilities (under circularly polarized light) can be used to precisely tune the resonance condition between different rotational states. To verify that this latter technique is amenable to current-generation experiments, we calculate, from first principles, the AC polarizability for ${\ensuremath{\sigma}}^{+}$ light for 40K87Rb. Finally, we show that experiments are capable of detecting the unconventional topology of the Hopf insulator by varying the termination of the lattice at its edges, which gives rise to three distinct classes of edge mode spectra.