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arXiv:1505.04002 · Physical Review A

Quantum dynamics generated by the two-axis countertwisting Hamiltonian

Dariusz Kajtoch, Emilia Witkowska

Published Jul 20, 2015• 34 citations
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Abstract

We study the quantum dynamics generated by the two-axis countertwisting Hamiltonian from an initial spin coherent state in a spin-$1/2$ ensemble. A characteristic feature of the two-axis countertwisting Hamiltonian is the existence of four neutrally stable and two saddle unstable fixed points. The presence of the latter is responsible for a high level of squeezing. The squeezing is accompanied by the appearance of several quantum states of interest in quantum metrology with Heisenberg-limited sensitivity, and we show fidelity functions for some of them. We present exact results for the quantum Fisher information and the squeezing parameter. Although the overall time evolution of both changes strongly with the number of particles, we find that they have regular dynamics for short times. We explain scaling with the system size by using a Gaussian approach.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.92.013623

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We study the quantum dynamics generated by the two-axis countertwisting Hamiltonian from an initial spin coherent state in a spin-1/21/21/2 ensemble. A characteristic feature of the two-axis countertwisting Hamiltonian is the existence of four neutrally stable and two saddle unstable fixed points. The presence of the latter is responsible for a high level of squeezing. The squeezing is accompanied by the appearance of several quantum states of interest in quantum metrology with Heisenberg-limited sensitivity, and we show fidelity functions for some of them. We present exact results for the quantum Fisher information and the squeezing parameter. Although the overall time evolution of both changes strongly with the number of particles, we find that they have regular dynamics for short times. We explain scaling with the system size by using a Gaussian approach.
We analyze a scheme for storage of entanglement quantified by the quantum Fisher information in the two-axis countertwisting model. A characteristic feature of the two-axis countertwisting Hamiltonian is the existence of the four stable center and two unstable saddle fixed points in the mean-field phase portrait. The entangled state is generated dynamically from an initial spin-coherent state located around an unstable saddle fixed point. At an optimal moment of time the state is shifted to a position around the stable center fixed points by a single rotation, where its dynamics and properties are approximately frozen. We also discuss evolution with noise. In some cases the effect of noise turns out to be relatively weak, which is explained by parity conservation.
We consider a four-qubit system, initially in a coherent state along the z-axis, and study its time dependence under the influence of the well-known two-axis countertwisting Hamiltonian. Analyzing the time dependence of the spin operators, we observe its squeezing properties, according to the criterion given by Kitagawa et al. We also perform similar calculations for the same Hamiltonian in the presence of an external fleld and compare its squeezing properties with that of the former. It is observed that the details of the squeezing properties are difierent in the two cases. Plots of the squeezing parameters as a function of time and the rotation angle for both cases are presented.
There is currently much interest in the two-axis countertwisting spin squeezing Hamiltonian suggested originally by Kitagawa and Ueda, since it is useful for interferometry and metrology. No analytical solution valid for arbitrary spin values seems to be available. In this article we systematically consider the issue of the analytical solvability of this Hamiltonian for various specific spin values. We show that the spin squeezing dynamics can be considered to be analytically solved for angular momentum values upto 21/221/221/2, i.e. for 212121 spin half particles. We also identify the properties of the system responsible for yielding analytic solutions for much higher spin values than based on naive expectations. Our work is relevant for analytic characterization of squeezing experiments with low spin values, and semi-analytic modeling of higher values of spins.
We analyze a model for spin squeezing based on the so-called countertwisting Hamiltonian, including the effects of dissipation and finite system size. We discuss the conditions under which the Heisenberg limit, i.e., phase sensitivity $\ensuremath{\propto}1/N,$ can be achieved. A specific implementation of this model based on atom-atom interactions via quantized photon exchange is presented in detail. The resulting excitation corresponds to the creation of spin-flipped atomic pairs and can be used for fast generation of entangled atomic ensembles, spin squeezing, and applications in quantum information processing. The conditions for achieving strong spin squeezing with this mechanism are also analyzed.
Spin squeezing in collective atomic ensembles enables quantum-enhanced metrology by reducing noise below the standard quantum limit through nonlinear interactions. Extending the one-axis and two-axis twisting paradigms of Kitagawa and Ueda, we introduce a general class of three-axis spin squeezed states within the anisotropic Lipkin-Meshkov-Glick model. The model features direction-dependent quadratic couplings that interpolate between uniaxial and biaxial regimes and can be interpreted as an asymmetric quantum rotor. Using semiclassical dynamics, Majorana representations, and Husimi-Q distributions, we analyze the structure and metrological properties of the resulting states. The three-axis framework reproduces the known N^(-2/3) scaling of one-axis twisting and the Heisenberg-limited N^(-1) scaling of two-axis twisting, while allowing additional tunability and enhanced entanglement generation in low-spin systems. We further show that tuning the anisotropy parameters induces ground-state and excited-state quantum phase transitions, including a second-order transition associated with level clustering and critical dynamics. These results unify spin squeezing, quantum criticality, and rotor analogies, and suggest implementations in Rydberg arrays and cavity-QED platforms for precision sensing and quantum simulation.