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arXiv:2301.01763 · Communications Physics

Statics and dynamics of non-Hermitian many-body localization

József Mák, M. J. Bhaseen, Arijeet Pal

Published Mar 13, 2024• 16 citations
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Abstract

Abstract Many-body localized phases retain memory of their initial conditions in disordered interacting systems with unitary dynamics. The stability of the localized phase due to the breakdown of unitarity is of relevance to experiment in the presence of dissipation. Here we investigate the impact of non-Hermitian perturbations on many-body localization. We focus on the interacting Hatano-Nelson model which breaks unitarity via asymmetric hopping. We explore the phase diagram for the mid-spectrum eigenstates as a function of the interaction strength and the non-Hermiticity. In contrast to the non-interacting case, our findings are consistent with a two-step approach to the localized regime. We also study the dynamics of the particle imbalance. We show that the distribution of relaxation time scales differs qualitatively between the localized and ergodic phases. Our findings suggest the possibility of an intermediate dynamical regime in disordered open systems.

DOI
10.1038/s42005-024-01576-y

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Abstract Many-body localized phases retain memory of their initial conditions in disordered interacting systems with unitary dynamics. The stability of the localized phase due to the breakdown of unitarity is of relevance to experiment in the presence of dissipation. Here we investigate the impact of non-Hermitian perturbations on many-body localization. We focus on the interacting Hatano-Nelson model which breaks unitarity via asymmetric hopping. We explore the phase diagram for the mid-spectrum eigenstates as a function of the interaction strength and the non-Hermiticity. In contrast to the non-interacting case, our findings are consistent with a two-step approach to the localized regime. We also study the dynamics of the particle imbalance. We show that the distribution of relaxation time scales differs qualitatively between the localized and ergodic phases. Our findings suggest the possibility of an intermediate dynamical regime in disordered open systems.
Abstract Understanding the relationship between many-body localization and spectra in non-Hermitian many-body systems is crucial. In a one-dimensional clean, long-range interaction-induced non-Hermitian many-body localization system, we have discovered the coexistence of static and dynamic spectral real–complex phase transitions, along with many-body ergodic–localized phase transitions. The phase diagrams of these two types of transitions show similar non-monotonic boundary trends but do not overlap, highlighting properties distinct from conventional disorder-induced non-Hermitian many-body localization. We also propose a potential experimental realization of this model in cold-atom systems. Our findings provide valuable insights for further understanding the relationship between non-Hermitian many-body localization and non-Hermitian spectra in long-range interacting systems.
Diffusion, dephasing and non-Hermiticity collaborate and realize an unconventional entanglement dynamics in a disordered, interacting and asymmetric (non-reciprocal) quantum media. Taking the Hatano-Nelson model as a concrete example, we first consider how diffusion occurs in a non-Hermitian disordered system for demonstraing that it is very different from the Hermitian case. Interestingly, a cascade like diffusion process as in the Hermitian case is suppressed in the clean limit and at weak disorder, while it revives in the vicinity of the localization-delocalization transition. Based on this observation, we then analyze how the entanglement entropy of the system evolves in the interacting non-Hermitian model, revealing its non-monotonic evolution in time. We clarify the different roles of dephasing in the time evolution of entanglement entropy in Hermitian and non-Hermitian systems, and show that the many-body dynamics is governed by a principle different from the Hermitian case. The size dependence of the results suggests with the increase of disorder, a (reentrant) area-volume-area law crossover of the maximal entanglement entropy. To analyze the effects of disorder on a firm basis, using the Hermitian limit as a benchmark, we employ a quasi-periodic disorder (Aubry-Andr\'{e} model) in the analyses.
Understanding the relationship between many-body localization and spectra in non-Hermitian many-body systems is crucial. In a one-dimensional clean, long-range interaction-induced non-Hermitian many-body localization system, we have discovered the coexistence of static and dynamic spectral real-complex phase transitions, along with many-body ergodic-localized phase transitions. The phase diagrams of these two types of transitions show similar non-monotonic boundary trends but do not overlap, highlighting properties distinct from conventional disorder-induced non-Hermitian many-body localization. We also propose a potential experimental realization of this model in cold-atom systems. Our findings provide valuable insights for further understanding the relationship between non-Hermitian many-body localization and non-Hermitian spectra in long-range interacting systems.
The explorations of non-Hermiticity have been devoted to investigate the disorder-induced many-body localization (MBL). However, the sensitivity of the spatial boundary conditions and the interplay of the non-Hermitian skin effect with many-body phenomena are not yet clear. For a MBL system in the presence of nonreciprocal tunnelings and random disorder potential, we identify two different complex-real spectral transitions, one is present for both open and periodic boundaries while the other is present only for open boundaries of coupled non-Hermitian chains. The later is driven due to the interchain coupling at weak disorder where the level statistics of the real eigenenergy phase follows a Gaussian orthogonal ensemble. We further characterize wave functions through the (biorthogonal) inverse participation ratio and fractal dimension, which reveal the suppression of skin effect in the non-Hermitian MBL phase. Finally, we demonstrate that the quench dynamics of the local particle density, spin imbalance, and entanglement entropy also signify the hallmark of the boundary effects and nonergodic character of many-body localization.
The entanglement dynamics in a non-Hermitian quantum system is studied numerically and analyzed from the viewpoint of quasiparticle picture. As a concrete model, we consider a one-dimensional tight-binding model with asymmetric hopping (Hatano-Nelson model) under onsite disorder and nearest-neighbor interaction. As opposed to an assertion of previous studies, the entanglement dynamics in this non-Hermitian quantum system is very different from the one in its Hermitian counterpart, especially in the delocalized regime with weak disorder; there the entanglement entropy Sent(t){S}_{\mathrm{ent}}(t)Sent​(t) shows a characteristic nonmonotonic time evolution. We have clarified and quantified the nature of this behavior in the quasiparticle picture. In the asymptotic regime of $t\ensuremath{\rightarrow}\ensuremath{\infty}$, the entanglement entropy Sent(t){S}_{\mathrm{ent}}(t)Sent​(t) in this regime saturates to a much suppressed value, which increases only logarithmically with respect to the size of the subsystem.
We model a one-dimensional current-driven interacting disordered system through a non-Hermitian Hamiltonian with asymmetric hopping and study the entanglement properties of its eigenstates. In particular, we investigate whether a many-body localizable system undergoes a transition to a current-carrying nonequilibrium steady state under the drive and how the entanglement properties of the quantum states change across the transition. We also discuss the dynamics, entanglement growth, and long-time fate of a generic initial state under an appropriate time evolution of the system governed by the non-Hermitian Hamiltonian. Our study reveals rich entanglement structures of the eigenstates of the non-Hermitian Hamiltonian. We find transition between current-carrying states with volume-law to area-law entanglement entropy, as a function of disorder and the strength of the non-Hermitian term.