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arXiv:2304.09596 · SciPost Physics

Ideal fracton superfluids

Jácome Armas, Emil Have

Published Jan 30, 2024• 29 citations
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Abstract

We investigate the thermodynamics of equilibrium thermal states and their near-equilibrium dynamics in systems with fractonic symmetries in arbitrary curved space. By explicitly gauging the fracton algebra we obtain the geometry and gauge fields that field theories with conserved dipole moment couple to. We use the resultant fracton geometry to show that it is not possible to construct an equilibrium partition function for global thermal states unless part of the fractonic symmetries is spontaneously broken. This leads us to introduce two classes of fracton superfluids with conserved energy and momentum, namely p p -wave and s s -wave fracton superfluids. The latter phase is an Aristotelian superfluid at ideal order but with a velocity constraint and can be split into two separate regimes: The U(1) fracton superfluid and the pinned s s -wave superfluid regimes. For each of these classes and regimes we formulate a hydrodynamic expansion and study the resultant modes. We find distinctive features of each of these phases and regimes at ideal order in gradients, without introducing dissipative effects. In particular we note the appearance of a sound mode for s s -wave fracton superfluids. We show that previous work on fracton hydrodynamics falls into these classes. Finally, we study ultra-dense p p -wave fracton superfluids with a large kinetic mass in addition to studying the thermodynamics of ideal Aristotelian superfluids.

DOI
10.21468/scipostphys.16.1.039

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We investigate the thermodynamics of equilibrium thermal states and their near-equilibrium dynamics in systems with fractonic symmetries in arbitrary curved space. By explicitly gauging the fracton algebra we obtain the geometry and gauge fields that field theories with conserved dipole moment couple to. We use the resultant fracton geometry to show that it is not possible to construct an equilibrium partition function for global thermal states unless part of the fractonic symmetries is spontaneously broken. This leads us to introduce two classes of fracton superfluids with conserved energy and momentum, namely p p -wave and s s -wave fracton superfluids. The latter phase is an Aristotelian superfluid at ideal order but with a velocity constraint and can be split into two separate regimes: The U(1) fracton superfluid and the pinned s s -wave superfluid regimes. For each of these classes and regimes we formulate a hydrodynamic expansion and study the resultant modes. We find distinctive features of each of these phases and regimes at ideal order in gradients, without introducing dissipative effects. In particular we note the appearance of a sound mode for s s -wave fracton superfluids. We show that previous work on fracton hydrodynamics falls into these classes. Finally, we study ultra-dense p p -wave fracton superfluids with a large kinetic mass in addition to studying the thermodynamics of ideal Aristotelian superfluids.
Abstract We construct a theory of hydrodynamic transport for systems with conserved dipole moment, U(1) charge, energy, and momentum. These models have been considered in the context of fractons, since their elementary and isolated charges are immobile by symmetry, and have two known translation-invariant gapless phases: a “p-wave dipole superfluid” phase where the dipole symmetry is spontaneously broken and a “s-wave dipole superfluid” phase where both the U(1) and dipole symmetries are spontaneously broken. We argue on grounds of symmetry and thermodynamics that there is no transitionally-invariant gapless fluid with unbroken dipole symmetry. In this work, we primarily focus on the hydrodynamic description of p-wave dipole superfluids, including leading dissipative corrections. That theory has, in a sense, a dynamical scaling exponent z = 2, and its spectrum of fluctuations includes novel subdiffusive modes ω ∼ −ik4 in the shear sector and magnon-like sound mode ω ∼ ±k2 − ik2. By coupling the fluid to background fields, we find response functions of the various symmetry currents. We also present a preliminary generalization of our work to s-wave dipole superfluids, which resemble z = 1 fluids and feature sound waves and diffusive shear modes, as in an ordinary fluid. However, the spectrum also contains a magnon-like second-sound mode ω ∼ ±k2 ± k4 − ik4 with subdiffusive attenuation.
We examine the hydrodynamics of systems with spontaneously broken multipolar symmetries using a systematic effective field theory. We focus on the simplest nontrivial setting: a system with charge and dipole symmetry, but without momentum conservation. When no symmetries are broken, our formalism reproduces the quartic subdiffusion ($\ensuremath{\omega}\ensuremath{\sim}\ensuremath{-}i{k}^{4}$) characteristic of ``fracton hydrodynamics'' with conserved dipole moment. Our formalism also captures spontaneous breaking of charge and/or dipole symmetry. When charge symmetry is spontaneously broken, the hydrodynamic modes are quadratically propagating and quartically relaxing ($\ensuremath{\omega}\ensuremath{\sim}\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}{k}^{2}\ensuremath{-}i{k}^{4}$). When the dipole symmetry is spontaneously broken but the charge symmetry is preserved, then we find quadratically relaxing (diffusive) transverse modes, plus another mode which, depending on parameters, may be either purely diffusive ($\ensuremath{\omega}\ensuremath{\sim}\ensuremath{-}i{k}^{2}$) or quadratically propagating and quadratically relaxing ($\ensuremath{\omega}\ensuremath{\sim}\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}{k}^{2}\ensuremath{-}i{k}^{2}$). Our work provides concrete predictions that may be tested in near-term cold atom experiments, and also lays out a general framework that may be applied to study systems with spontaneously broken multipolar symmetries.
We present a dissipative hydrodynamic theory of "s-wave dipole superfluids" that arise in phases of translation-invariant and dipole-symmetric models in which the U(1) symmetry is spontaneously broken. The hydrodynamic description is subtle on account of an analogue of dangerously irrelevant operators, which requires us to formalize an entirely new derivative counting scheme suitable for these fluids. We use our hydrodynamic model to investigate the linearized response of such a fluid, characterized by sound modes ω∼±k−ik2ω\sim \pm k - ik^2ω∼±k−ik2, shear modes ω∼−ik2ω\sim-ik^2ω∼−ik2, and magnon-like propagating modes ω∼±k2−ik4ω\sim \pm k^2 - ik^4ω∼±k2−ik4 that are the dipole-invariant version of superfluid "second sound" modes. We find that these fluids can also admit equilibrium states with "dipole superflow" that resemble a polarized medium. Finally, we couple our theory to slowly varying background fields, which allows us to compute response functions of hydrodynamic operators and Kubo formulas for hydrodynamic transport coefficients.
A bstract We present a dissipative hydrodynamic theory of “s-wave dipole superfluids” that arise in phases of translation-invariant and dipole-symmetric models in which the U(1) symmetry is spontaneously broken. The hydrodynamic description is subtle on account of an analogue of dangerously irrelevant operators, which requires us to formalize an entirely new derivative counting scheme suitable for these fluids. We use our hydrodynamic model to investigate the linearized response of such a fluid, characterized by sound modes ω ~ ± k – ik 2 , shear modes ω ~ – ik 2 , and magnon-like propagating modes ω ~ ± k 2 – ik 4 that are the dipole-invariant version of superfluid “second sound” modes. We find that these fluids can also admit equilibrium states with “dipole superflow” that resemble a polarized medium. Finally, we couple our theory to slowly varying background fields, which allows us to compute response functions of hydrodynamic operators and Kubo formulas for hydrodynamic transport coefficients.
We introduce new classes of hydrodynamic theories inspired by the recently discovered fracton phases of quantum matter.Fracton phases are characterized by elementary excitations (fractons) with restricted mobility.The hydrodynamic theories we introduce describe thermalization in systems with fractonlike mobility constraints, including fluids where charge and dipole moment are both locally conserved, and fluids where charge is conserved along every line or plane of a lattice.Each of these fluids is subdiffusive and constitutes a new universality class of hydrodynamic behavior.There are infinitely many such classes, each with distinct subdiffusive exponents, all of which are captured by our formalism.Our framework naturally explains recent results on dynamics with constrained quantum circuits, as well as recent experiments with ultracold atoms in tilted optical lattices.We identify crisp experimental signatures of these novel hydrodynamics and explain how they may be realized in near term ultracold atom experiments.
Fractonic superfluids are featured by the interplay of spontaneously broken charge symmetry and mobility constraints on single-particle kinematics due to the conservation of higher moments, such as dipoles, angular charge moments, and quadrupoles. Building on prior studies by Yuan [] and Chen [], we study a class of fractonic superfluids, termed (HFS), in which bosons of multiple species interact while moment hybridization is conserved. We explore the consequences of hybridization via two model series: , conserving total moments of the same order across species, and , conserving total moments of different orders. In Model Series A, we analyze dipole moment hybridization and extend the discussion to higher-order moments, examining the ground state, Goldstone modes, correlation functions, and so on. We compute the minimal spatial dimensions, where the total charge symmetry begins to get partially broken via particle-hole condensation, leading to true off-diagonal long-range order. In Model Series B, we focus on HFS with hybrid dipole-quadrupole conservation. For both series, we introduce Bose-Hubbard–type lattice models that reduce to either of both series in the weak Hubbard interaction regime. We perform a mean-field analysis on the global phase diagram and discuss experimental realizations in strongly tilted optical lattices via a third-order perturbation theory. This work, alongside prior studies, completes a trilogy on fractonic superfluids, uncovering symmetry-breaking physics emerging from higher moment conservation, leaving various promising studies for future investigation.