We investigate the quantum dynamics of two-level systems (TLS) in glasses at low temperatures (1 K and below). We study an ensemble of TLSs coupled to phonons. By integrating out the phonons within the framework of the Gorini-Kossakowski-Sudarshan-Lindblad (GKSL) master equation, we derive analytically the explicit form of the interactions among TLSs, and of the dissipation terms. We find that the unitary dynamics of the system shows clear signatures of many-body localization physics. We study numerically the time behavior of the concurrence, which measures pairwise entanglement also in nonisolated systems, and show that it presents a power-law decay both in the absence and in the presence of dissipation, if the latter is not too large. These features can be ascribed to the strong, long-tailed disorder characterizing the distributions of the model parameters. Our findings show that assuming ergodicity when discussing TLS physics might not be justified for all kinds of experiments on low-temperature glasses.
We investigate the quantum dynamics of two-level systems (TLS) in glasses at low temperatures (1 K and below). We study an ensemble of TLSs coupled to phonons. By integrating out the phonons within the framework of the Gorini-Kossakowski-Sudarshan-Lindblad (GKSL) master equation, we derive analytically the explicit form of the interactions among TLSs, and of the dissipation terms. We find that the unitary dynamics of the system shows clear signatures of many-body localization physics. We study numerically the time behavior of the concurrence, which measures pairwise entanglement also in nonisolated systems, and show that it presents a power-law decay both in the absence and in the presence of dissipation, if the latter is not too large. These features can be ascribed to the strong, long-tailed disorder characterizing the distributions of the model parameters. Our findings show that assuming ergodicity when discussing TLS physics might not be justified for all kinds of experiments on low-temperature glasses.
We are able to detect clear signatures of dephasing---a distinct trait of many-body localization (MBL)---via the dynamics of two-site entanglement, quantified through the concurrence. Using the protocol implemented by M. Schreiber et al. [Science 349, 842 (2015)], we show that in the MBL phase the average two-site entanglement decays in time as a power law, while in the Anderson localized phase it tends to a plateau. The power-law exponent is not universal and displays a clear dependence on the interaction strength. This behavior is also qualitatively different from the ergodic phase, where the two-site entanglement decays exponentially. All the results are obtained by means of time-dependent density matrix renormalization-group simulations and further corroborated by analytical calculations on an effective model. Two-site entanglement has been measured in cold atoms: our analysis paves the way for the first direct experimental test of many-body dephasing in the MBL phase.
An approach based on a non-Markovian time-convolutionless polaron master equation is used to probe dynamics of a central chromophore embedded in a bath of two-level systems commonly found in low-temperature glasses. By treating the Hamiltonian in the polaron frame, we can account for initial nonequilibrium bath states as well as the spatially correlated environmental effect. Relevant realistic situations are explored by adopting parameters from previous experiments. It is found that the temperature of the boson bath has a substantial effect on the population relaxation and the decoherence process, and a higher temperature also results in a higher saturation value of the entanglement entropy, while the coupling between the chromophore and the TLS has an effect that goes counter to that of the temperature.
Many-body localized (MBL) systems are characterized by the absence of transport and thermalization and, therefore, cannot be described by conventional statistical mechanics. In this paper, using analytic arguments and numerical simulations, we study the behavior of local observables in an isolated MBL system following a quantum quench. For the case of a global quench, we find that the local observables reach stationary, highly nonthermal values at long times as a result of slow dephasing characteristic of the MBL phase. These stationary values retain the local memory of the initial state due to the existence of local integrals of motion in the MBL phase. The temporal fluctuations around stationary values exhibit universal power-law decay in time, with an exponent set by the localization length and the diagonal entropy of the initial state. Such a power-law decay holds for any local observable and is related to the logarithmic in time growth of entanglement in the MBL phase. This behavior distinguishes the MBL phase from both the Anderson insulator (where no stationary state is reached) and from the ergodic phase (where relaxation is expected to be exponential). For the case of a local quench, we also find a power-law approach of local observables to their stationary values when the system is prepared in a mixed state. Quench protocols considered in this paper can be naturally implemented in systems of ultracold atoms in disordered optical lattices, and the behavior of local observables provides a direct experimental signature of many-body localization.
Understanding the effects of disorder in quantum many-body systems is one of the central challenges of contemporary statistical physics. Its interplay with interactions and quantum fluctuations profoundly modifies the nature of quantum states and their dynamics, giving rise to phenomena such as localization, ergodicity breaking, and the emergence of complex collective behavior. This thesis presents new results on two classes of disordered quantum systems. The first part is devoted to the study of the many-body localization transition, a paradigmatic example of disorder-induced ergodicity breaking. The critical properties of the transition are investigated using a numerical renormalization-group approach, establishing a connection between its scaling behavior and that of the Anderson localization transition on tree-like graphs. The second part focuses on the zero-temperature quantum spin-glass phase of the two-dimensional bond-disordered Heisenberg model. Combining large-scale numerical simulations with a semiclassical expansion, evidence is provided for the existence of the spin-glass phase. The effective model governing the semiclassical fluctuations is further analyzed to characterize the low-energy excitation spectrum and its localization properties. Finally, the weak-disorder regime is investigated and its implications for the ferromagnetic phase are discussed. Overall, the results presented in this thesis contribute to the understanding of the effects of disorder in interacting quantum many-body systems, encompassing both localization phenomena and the collective behavior of disordered quantum magnets.
Open quantum systems exhibit dynamics ranging from unitary evolution to irreversible dissipation. While the Gorini--Kossakowski--Sudarshan--Lindblad (GKSL) equation uniquely characterizes Markovian CPTP evolution, many physical platforms display non-Markovian features such as algebraic relaxation and coherence backflow. Fractional calculus provides a natural way to model such long-memory behavior through power-law temporal kernels introduced by fractional time derivatives. Here we develop a unified framework that embeds fractional master equations within the broader hierarchy of open-system formalisms. The fractional equation forms a structured subclass of memory-kernel models, reduces to the Lindblad form at unit order, and, through Bochner--Phillips subordination, admits a CPTP representation as an average over Lindblad semigroups. Its resolvent structure further connects fractional dynamics to established non-Markovian approaches, including Nakajima--Zwanzig kernels and hierarchical equations of motion, providing a compact surrogate for long-memory effects. This formulation positions fractional calculus as a rigorous and practical language for quantum dynamics with intrinsic memory, supporting both analytical insight and efficient quantum simulation.
A central goal in the study of modern condensed matter physics is the characterization of the dynamical properties of quantum systems. Many decades of effort towards this goal, studying a diverse range of (near-equilibrium) quantum matter, from Fermi liquids, to quantum two-level systems, to interacting spin models, and more, has revealed a remarkable pervasiveness of the simple dynamical description of these complex systems in terms of quasi-particles that carry spin, charge, and heat, and that are generally able to equilibrate systems. \n\nThis thesis is an examination of some exceptions to this rule. Specifically, we study a number of instances of quantum matter where equilibration phenomena happens at rather long time scales, or does not occur at all. Particular emphasis is laid on the role of dimensionality, disorder, and dissipation in engendering such novel dynamical behavior.\n\nFirst, we consider non-equilibrium dynamics in one-dimensional quasi-condensates. Low dimensionality inhibits scattering in these systems, and low-energy excitations are long-lived phase fluctuations that exhibit an enriched conformal symmetry. Utilizing this symmetry, we generalize sudden quenches typically used to study non-equilibrium dynamics to quenches along general relativistic and conformal trajectories. Gases never truly equilibrate after such a quench; instead, they evolve into a `prethermal' state with thermal-looking correlations and a chiral asymmetry. \n\nWe then study the problem of the dynamical transition driven by disorder, from an ergodic to a non-ergodic phase, in one-dimensional quantum spin chains. In particular, in XXZ chains with on-site disorder, we find a unique intermediate phase straddling the boundary of the dynamical phase transition, wherein rare-region effects lead to long-time tails in equilibration and vanishing DC conduction before the onset of non-ergodicity. We propose generalizations of such `Griffiths' behavior to arbitrary dimensions. We also study the dynamics of random-bond Heisenberg chains by developing a strong-disorder renormalization group protocol for these systems. We discuss how magnetic noise from such disordered systems contains signatures of their anomalous dynamical properties. \n\nNext, we re-examine the phenomenological theory of two-level systems in amorphous materials in the light of new experimental evidence that these states have large electric/magnetic dipole moments. We propose and justify an interpretation of the model as one of tunneling electrons slowed down by a large phonon drag and discuss the dynamical consequences of such polaronic effects. \n\nFinally, we discuss how magnetic noise measurements can be used to non-invasively access the anomalous properties of systems such as those discussed above. In particular, we examine how scattering properties of isolated magnetic impurities and non-local transport in a variety of two-dimensional materials can be probed experimentally using NV centers as noise magnetometers.