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arXiv:2208.01659 · Quantum

Dynamical quantum phase transitions from random matrix theory

David Pérez-Garcı́a, Leonardo Santilli, Miguel Tierz

Published Feb 29, 2024• 5 citations
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Abstract

We uncover a novel dynamical quantum phase transition, using random matrix theory and its associated notion of planar limit. We study it for the isotropic XY Heisenberg spin chain. For this, we probe its real-time dynamics through the Loschmidt echo. This leads to the study of a random matrix ensemble with a complex weight, whose analysis requires novel technical considerations, that we develop. We obtain three main results: 1) There is a third order phase transition at a rescaled critical time, that we determine. 2) The third order phase transition persists away from the thermodynamic limit. 3) For times below the critical value, the difference between the thermodynamic limit and a finite chain decreases exponentially with the system size. All these results depend in a rich manner on the parity of the number of flipped spins of the quantum state conforming the fidelity.

DOI
10.22331/q-2024-02-29-1271

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We uncover a novel dynamical quantum phase transition, using random matrix theory and its associated notion of planar limit. We study it for the isotropic XY Heisenberg spin chain. For this, we probe its real-time dynamics through the Loschmidt echo. This leads to the study of a random matrix ensemble with a complex weight, whose analysis requires novel technical considerations, that we develop. We obtain three main results: 1) There is a third order phase transition at a rescaled critical time, that we determine. 2) The third order phase transition persists away from the thermodynamic limit. 3) For times below the critical value, the difference between the thermodynamic limit and a finite chain decreases exponentially with the system size. All these results depend in a rich manner on the parity of the number of flipped spins of the quantum state conforming the fidelity.
In this work we develop the theory of the Loschmidt echo and dynamical phase transitions in noninteracting strongly disordered Fermi systems after a quench. In finite systems the Loschmidt echo displays zeros in the complex time plane that depend on the random potential realization. Remarkably, the zeros coalesce to form a 2D manifold in the thermodynamic limit, atypical for 1D systems, crossing the real axis at a sharply defined critical time. We show that this dynamical phase transition can be understood as a transition in the distribution function of the smallest absolute value of the eigenvalues of the Loschmidt matrix and develop a finite-size scaling theory. Contrary to expectations, the notion of dynamical phase transitions in disordered systems becomes decoupled from the equilibrium Anderson localization transition. Our results highlight the striking qualitative differences of quench dynamics in disordered and nondisordered many-fermion systems.
Phase transitions have recently been formulated in the time domain of quantum many-body systems, a phenomenon dubbed dynamical quantum phase transitions (DPTs), whose phenomenology is often divided in two types. One refers to distinct phases according to long-time averaged order parameters, while the other is focused on the nonanalytical behavior emerging in the rate function of the Loschmidt echo. Here we show that such DPTs can be found in systems with few degrees of freedom; i.e., they can take place without resorting to the traditional thermodynamic limit. We illustrate this by showing the existence of the two types of DPTs in a quantum Rabi model---a system involving a spin-12\frac{1}{2}21​ and a bosonic mode. The dynamical criticality appears in the limit of an infinitely large ratio of the spin frequency with respect to the bosonic one. We determine its dynamical phase diagram and study the long-time averaged order parameters, whose semiclassical approximation yields a jump at the transition point. We find the critical times at which the rate function becomes nonanalytical, showing its associated critical exponent as well as the corrections introduced by a finite frequency ratio. Our results open the door for the study of DPTs without the need to scale up the number of components, thus allowing for their investigation in well controllable systems.
We study exact zeros of Loschmidt echo and quantum speed limit time for dynamical quantum phase transition in finite size systems. Our results illustrate that exact zeros of Loschmidt echo exist even in finite size quantum systems when the postquench parameter takes some discrete values in regions with the corresponding equilibrium phase different from the initial phase. As the system size increases and tends to infinity, the discrete parameters distribute continuously in the parameter regions. We further analyze the time for the appearance of the first exact zero of Loschmidt echo which is known as the quantum speed limit time ${\ensuremath{\tau}}_{\text{QSL}}$. We demonstrate that the maximal value of ${\ensuremath{\tau}}_{\text{QSL}}$ is proportional to LLL and approaches infinity in the thermodynamical limit, when we quench the initial noncritical state to the critical phase. We also calculate the minimal value of ${\ensuremath{\tau}}_{\text{QSL}}$ and find that its behavior is dependent on the phase of initial state.
Understanding the properties of far-from-equilibrium quantum systems is becoming a major challenge of both fundamental and applied physics. For instance, the lack of thermalization in integrable and (many body) localized systems provides new insights in the understanding of the relaxation dynamics of quantum phases. On a more applicative side, the possibility of exploiting the properties of far-from-equilibrium states, for example in pump-probe experiments, opens unprecedented scenarios. The effort in providing a classification of far-from-equilibrium phases, in terms of local or topological order parameters, is hence intense. In this context, the concept of Dynamical Quantum Phase Transition (DQPT) has been introduced. A DQPT is (roughly) defined as a zero of the Loschmidt-Echo as a function of time and represents a natural non-equilibrium counterpart of a thermal phase transition. Here, we investigate the DQPTs occurring in the quantum xy chain subject to a quantum quench of finite duration. We show that the number of distinct DQPTs can vary as the duration of the quantum quench is varied. However, the parity of such number only depends on the pre-quench and post-quench Hamiltonians and is related to a topological invariant.
Abstract We investigate two types of dynamical quantum phase transitions (DQPTs) in the transverse-field Ising model on ensembles of Erdős–Rényi networks of size N. These networks consist of vertices connected randomly with probability p ( 0 < p ⩽ 1 ). Using analytical derivations and numerical techniques, we compare the characteristics of the transitions for p < 1 against the fully connected network (p = 1). We analytically show that the overlap between the wave function after a quench and the wave function of the fully connected network after the same quench deviates by at most O ( N − 1 / 2 ) . For a DQPT defined by an order parameter, the critical point remains unchanged for all p. For a DQPT defined by the rate function of the Loschmidt echo, we find that the rate function deviates from the p = 1 limit near vanishing points of the overlap with the initial state, while the critical point remains independent for all p. Our analysis suggests that this divergence arises from persistent non-trivial global many-body correlations absent in the p = 1 limit.
Dynamical quantum phase transitions reveal singularities in quench dynamics, characterized by the emergence of Loschmidt echo zeros at critical times, which usually exist only in the thermodynamic limit but are absent in finite-size quantum systems. In this Letter, we propose a theoretical scheme to probe Loschmidt echo zeros in finite-size systems by applying a two-step quenching protocol, which offers an experimentally feasible approach to study Loschmidt echo zeros. Using the transverse Ising model as a test bed, we identify that the exact Loschmidt echo zeros can be always accessed by tuning the quench rate, when the quench is across the phase transition point. The associated rate function displays divergence at critical times, accompanying with the change of the dynamical topological order parameter. The critical times are influenced by the quench rate, system size, and momentum modes, embodying the interplay between finite-size effects and critical dynamics. Moreover, the generality of these observations is further confirmed in the XY and Haldane models.