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arXiv:2308.08115 · Physical Review A

Solving and completing the Rabi-Stark model in the ultrastrong-coupling regime

Gen Li, Hao Zhu, Guo‐Feng Zhang

Published Aug 21, 2023• 2 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

In this work we employ a unitary transformation with a suitable parameter to convert the quantum Rabi-Stark model into a Jaynes-Cummings-like model. Subsequently we derive the analytical energy spectra in the ultrastrong coupling regime. The energy spectra exhibit a phenomenon known as spectral collapse, indicating the instability of the model due to the unboundedness of its energy from below at higher coupling parameters. To stabilize the Rabi-Stark model, we introduce a nonlinear photon-photon interaction term. We then compare the modified model with the original model in the classical oscillator limit. Interestingly, we observe a regular ``staircase'' pattern in the mean photon number of the ground state. This pattern exhibits a fixed slope and equal step width, which we determine analytically. Moreover, we analytically determine the phase boundary, which slightly differs from that in the original Rabi-Stark model. These findings offer insights into the investigation of those superradiant phase transitions that are unbounded from below due to the phenomenon of spectral collapse.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.108.023720

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In this work we employ a unitary transformation with a suitable parameter to convert the quantum Rabi-Stark model into a Jaynes-Cummings-like model. Subsequently we derive the analytical energy spectra in the ultrastrong coupling regime. The energy spectra exhibit a phenomenon known as spectral collapse, indicating the instability of the model due to the unboundedness of its energy from below at higher coupling parameters. To stabilize the Rabi-Stark model, we introduce a nonlinear photon-photon interaction term. We then compare the modified model with the original model in the classical oscillator limit. Interestingly, we observe a regular ``staircase'' pattern in the mean photon number of the ground state. This pattern exhibits a fixed slope and equal step width, which we determine analytically. Moreover, we analytically determine the phase boundary, which slightly differs from that in the original Rabi-Stark model. These findings offer insights into the investigation of those superradiant phase transitions that are unbounded from below due to the phenomenon of spectral collapse.
Abstract The quantum Rabi–Stark model, where the linear dipole coupling and the nonlinear Stark-like coupling are present on an equal footing, are studied within the Bogoliubov operators approach. Transcendental functions responsible for the exact solutions are derived in a compact way, much simpler than previous ones obtained in the Bargmann representation. The zeros of transcendental functions reproduce completely the regular spectra. In terms of the explicit pole structure of these functions, two kinds of exceptional eigenvalues are obtained and distinguished in a transparent manner. Very interestingly, a first-order quantum phase transition indicated by level crossing of the ground state and the first excited state is induced by the positive nonlinear Stark-like coupling, which is however absent in any previous isotropic quantum Rabi models. When the absolute value of the nonlinear coupling strength is equal to twice the cavity frequency, this model can be reduced to an effective quantum harmonic oscillator, and solutions are then obtained analytically. The spectra collapse phenomenon is observed at a critical coupling, while below this critical coupling, infinite discrete spectra accumulate into a finite energy from below.
In this manuscript, we analyze the mechanism of the superradiant phase transition in the anisotropic Rabi model under the classical oscillator limit using the pattern picture. By expanding the anisotropic Rabi model Hamiltonian in operator space, we obtained three patterns, and we find that the phase transition arises from the competition between patterns. The difficulty in achieving the classical oscillator limit motivates our investigation into the quantum phase transition within a parametrically-driven Jaynes-Cummings model. This parametrically-driven Jaynes-Cummings model can reproduce the dynamics of an ultrastrong-coupling anisotropic Rabi model in a squeezed-light frame. According to the eigenenergies and eigenstates of the normal and superradiant phases of this equivalent anisotropic Rabi model, we find that the excitation energy of the normal phase and the superradiant phase vanishes at the critical point. The photon number becomes infinite beyond the critical point. These results indicate that the system undergoes a superradiant phase transition at the critical point.
The controllability of current quantum technologies allows one to implement spin-boson models where two-photon couplings are the dominating terms of light-matter interaction. In this case, when the coupling strength becomes comparable with the characteristic frequencies, a spectral collapse can take place, i.e., the discrete system spectrum can collapse into a continuous band. Here, we analyze the thermodynamic limit of the two-photon Dicke model, which describes the interaction of an ensemble of qubits with a single bosonic mode. We find that there exists a parameter regime where two-photon interactions induce a superradiant phase transition, before the spectral collapse occurs. Furthermore, we extend the mean-field analysis by considering second-order quantum fluctuation terms, in order to analyze the low-energy spectrum and compare the critical behavior with the one-photon case.
ABSTRACT We investigate the spectral properties and quantum criticality of the two‐photon Rabi–Stark model. Using the exact solution of this model, we rigorously derive a condition for complete spectral collapse, where all bound states vanish. In this case, the energy gap closes at a critical coupling, signaling a continuous quantum phase transition. The corresponding gap exponent differs from those in both the one‐photon Rabi–Stark model and the quantum Rabi model, suggesting a distinct universality class. While in the general case, an infinite number of discrete bound states exist when spectral collapse occurs and the energy gap remains open. By mapping to an inverse square potential well, these bound levels approach the threshold energy exponentially. Our results offer new insights into novel spectral phenomena in nonlinear quantum Rabi models, with potential implications for experimental realizations in circuit quantum electrodynamics and trapped ion systems.
Abstract The quantum Rabi-Stark model, where the linear dipole coupling and the nonlinear Stark-like coupling is present on an equal footing, is studied within the tunable extended coherent states. The eigenvalues and eigenstates are therefore obtained exactly. Surprisingly, the entanglement entropy in the ground-state is found to jump suddenly with the coupling strength. The first-order quantum phase transition can be detected by level crossing of the ground state and the first excited state, which is however lacking in the original linear quantum Rabi model. Performing the first-order approximation in the present theory, we can derive closed-form analytical results for the ground-state. Interestingly, it agrees well with the exact solutions up to the ultra-strong coupling regime in a wide range of model parameters. The spectral collapses when the absolute value of the nonlinear coupling strength approaches to twice the cavity frequency is observed with the help of new solutions in the limits .
We use a recently derived gauge-invariant formulation of the problem of a two-level system coupled to an optical cavity to explore the transition between the weak and the ultrastrong coupling regimes of light-matter interaction. We explore this transition using the intensity correlations ${g}^{(2)}(\ensuremath{\tau})$ of the emitted light, and we find strong, unbounded bunching of the emission from systems governed by the Rabi Hamiltonian. Surprisingly, this effect is observed not only in the ultrastrong coupling regime, but also for weakly coupled systems, where the Jaynes-Cummings Hamiltonian would predict the opposite, antibunched emission. This suggests that the higher-order correlations are a particularly sensitive probe of the divergence between the Jaynes-Cummings and Rabi Hamiltonians, and they can serve as an indicator of the breakdown of the rotating wave approximation. Our findings indicate also that the boundary between the weakly, strongly, and ultra-strongly-coupled dynamics is much richer than currently accepted.