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arXiv:1811.09275 · Physical Review Research

Dynamical phase transitions in the two-dimensional transverse-field Ising model

Tomohiro Hashizume, Ian P. McCulloch, Jad C. Halimeh

Published Mar 31, 2022• 63 citations
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Abstract

We investigate two separate notions of dynamical phase transitions in the two-dimensional nearest-neighbor transverse-field Ising model on a square lattice using matrix product states and a hybrid infinite time-evolving block decimation algorithm, where the model is implemented on an infinitely long cylinder with a finite diameter along which periodic boundary conditions are employed. Starting in an ordered initial state, our numerical results suggest that quenches below the dynamical critical point give rise to a ferromagnetic long-time steady state with the Loschmidt return rate exhibiting anomalous cusps even when the order parameter never crosses zero. Within the accessible timescales of our numerics, quenches above the dynamical critical point suggest a paramagnetic long-time steady state with the return rate exhibiting regular cusps connected to zero crossings of the order parameter. Additionally, our simulations indicate that quenching slightly above the dynamical critical point leads to a coexistence region where both anomalous and regular cusps appear in the return rate. Quenches from the disordered phase further confirm our main conclusions. Our work supports the recent finding that anomalous cusps arise only when local spin excitations are the energetically dominant quasiparticles. Our results are accessible in modern Rydberg experiments.

DOI
10.1103/physrevresearch.4.013250

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We investigate two separate notions of dynamical phase transitions in the two-dimensional nearest-neighbor transverse-field Ising model on a square lattice using matrix product states and a hybrid infinite time-evolving block decimation algorithm, where the model is implemented on an infinitely long cylinder with a finite diameter along which periodic boundary conditions are employed. Starting in an ordered initial state, our numerical results suggest that quenches below the dynamical critical point give rise to a ferromagnetic long-time steady state with the Loschmidt return rate exhibiting anomalous cusps even when the order parameter never crosses zero. Within the accessible timescales of our numerics, quenches above the dynamical critical point suggest a paramagnetic long-time steady state with the return rate exhibiting regular cusps connected to zero crossings of the order parameter. Additionally, our simulations indicate that quenching slightly above the dynamical critical point leads to a coexistence region where both anomalous and regular cusps appear in the return rate. Quenches from the disordered phase further confirm our main conclusions. Our work supports the recent finding that anomalous cusps arise only when local spin excitations are the energetically dominant quasiparticles. Our results are accessible in modern Rydberg experiments.
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Using an infinite matrix product state (iMPS) technique based on the time-dependent variational principle (TDVP), we study two major types of dynamical phase transitions (DPT) in the one-dimensional transverse-field Ising model (TFIM) with long-range power-law ($\ensuremath{\propto}1/{r}^{\ensuremath{\alpha}}$ with rrr interspin distance) interactions out of equilibrium in the thermodynamic limit---DPT-I: based on an order parameter in a (quasi-)steady state, and DPT-II: based on nonanalyticities (cusps) in the Loschmidt-echo return rate. We construct the corresponding rich dynamical phase diagram, while considering different quench initial conditions. We find a nontrivial connection between both types of DPT based on their critical lines. Moreover, and very interestingly, we detect a new DPT-II dynamical phase in a certain range of interaction exponent $\ensuremath{\alpha}$, characterized by what we call anomalous cusps that are distinct from the regular cusps usually associated with DPT-II. Our results provide the characterization of experimentally accessible signatures of the dynamical phases studied in this work.
Using the framework of infinite matrix product states, the existence of an anomalous dynamical phase for the transverse-field Ising chain with sufficiently long-range interactions was first reported in J. C. Halimeh and V. Zauner-Stauber [Phys. Rev. B 96, 134427 (2017)10.1103/PhysRevB.96.134427], where it was shown that anomalous cusps arise in the Loschmidt-echo return rate for sufficiently small quenches within the ferromagnetic phase. In this work we further probe the nature of the anomalous phase through calculating the corresponding Fisher-zero lines in the complex time plane. We find that these Fisher-zero lines exhibit a qualitative difference in their behavior, where, unlike in the case of the regular phase, some of them terminate before intersecting the imaginary axis, indicating the existence of smooth peaks in the return rate preceding the cusps. Additionally, we discuss in detail the infinite matrix product state time-evolution method used to calculate Fisher zeros and the Loschmidt-echo return rate using the matrix product state transfer matrix. Our work sheds further light on the nature of the anomalous phase in the long-range transverse-field Ising chain, while the numerical treatment presented can be applied to more general quantum spin chains.
The existence or absence of nonanalytic cusps in the Loschmidt-echo return rate is traditionally employed to distinguish between a regular dynamical phase (regular cusps) and a trivial phase (no cusps) in quantum spin chains after a global quench. However, numerical evidence in a recent study (J. C. Halimeh and V. Zauner-Stauber, arXiv:1610.02019) suggests that instead of the trivial phase, a distinct anomalous dynamical phase characterized by a novel type of nonanalytic cusps occurs in the one-dimensional transverse-field Ising model when interactions are sufficiently long range. Using an analytic semiclassical approach and exact diagonalization, we show that this anomalous phase also arises in the fully connected case of infinite-range interactions, and we discuss its defining signature. Our results show that the transition from the regular to the anomalous dynamical phase coincides with Z2{\mathbb{Z}}_{2}Z2​-symmetry breaking in the infinite-time limit, thereby showing a connection between two different concepts of dynamical criticality. Our work further expands the dynamical phase diagram of long-range interacting quantum spin chains, and can be tested experimentally in ion-trap setups and ultracold atoms in optical cavities, where interactions are inherently long range.
We construct the finite-temperature dynamical phase diagram of the fully connected transverse-field Ising model from the vantage point of two disparate concepts of dynamical criticality. An analytical derivation of the classical dynamics and exact diagonalization simulations are used to study the dynamics after a quantum quench in the system prepared in a thermal equilibrium state. The different dynamical phases characterized by the type of nonanalyticities that emerge in an appropriately defined Loschmidt-echo return rate directly correspond to the dynamical phases determined by the spontaneous breaking of Z2{\mathbb{Z}}_{2}Z2​ symmetry in the long-time steady state. The dynamical phase diagram is qualitatively different depending on whether the initial thermal state is ferromagnetic or paramagnetic. Whereas the former leads to a dynamical phase diagram that can be directly related to its equilibrium counterpart, the latter gives rise to a divergent dynamical critical temperature at vanishing final transverse-field strength.
The discovery of dynamical quantum phase transitions (DQPTs) has fundamentally challenged the traditional view that phase transitions only occur in thermal equilibrium. Experimental platforms and 1D numerical methods, like matrix product states (MPS), have made great progress. However, exploring true 2D DQPTs remains difficult due to finite-size limitations and the geometric biases of quasi-1D cylinder mappings. Here, we bypass these limitations by deploying a tree tensor network (TTN) approach. This allows us to directly compute the quench dynamics of the transverse-field Ising model (TFIM) on an open 2D square lattice. Because the TTN architecture naturally mirrors 2D lattice connectivity, we can extract the global Loschmidt echo. Our simulations reveal that while deep quenches yield standard DQPTs, quenching within the ferromagnetic phase produces an anomalous dynamical response. In this regime, the rate function exhibits sharp non-analytic peaks even as the macroscopic order parameter maintains its initial sign. This decoupled behavior strongly indicates that local spin excitations drive 2D DQPTs, rather than the macroscopic domain-wall motions seen in 1D chains. These results provide a quantitative numerical baseline for understanding non-equilibrium quantum matter in higher dimensions.