Krylov complexity, as a novel measure of operator complexity under Heisenberg evolution, exhibits many interesting universal behaviors and also bounds many other complexity measures. In this work, we study Krylov complexity
K(t) in Random Matrix Theory (RMT). In large
N limit: (1) For infinite temperature, we analytically show that the Lanczos coefficient
{bn} saturate to constant plateau
n→∞limbn=b, rendering a linear growing complexity
K(t)∼t, in contrast to the exponential-in-time growth in chaotic local systems in thermodynamic limit. After numerically comparing this plateau value
b to a large class of chaotic local quantum systems, we find that up to small fluctuations, it actually bounds the
{bn} in chaotic local quantum systems. Therefore we conjecture that in chaotic local quantum systems after scrambling time, the speed of linear growth of Krylov complexity cannot be larger than that in RMT. (2) For low temperature, we analytically show that
bn will first exhibit linear growth with
n, whose slope saturates the famous chaos bound. After hitting the same plateau
b,
bn will then remain constant. This indicates
K(t)∼e2πt/β before scrambling time
t∗∼O(βlogβ), and after that it will grow linearly in time, with the same speed as in infinite temperature. We finally remark on the effect of finite
N corrections.
Quantum chaotic systems are conjectured to display a spectrum whose fine-grained features (gaps and correlations) are well described by random matrix theory (RMT). We propose and develop a complementary version of this conjecture: quantum chaotic systems display a Lanczos spectrum whose local means and covariances are well described by RMT. To support this proposal, we first demonstrate its validity in examples of chaotic and integrable systems. We then show that for Haar-random initial states in RMTs the mean and covariance of the Lanczos spectrum suffice to produce the full long-time behavior of general survival probabilities including the spectral form factor, as well as the spread complexity. In addition, for initial states with continuous overlap with energy eigenstates, we analytically find the long-time averages of the probabilities of Krylov basis elements in terms of the mean Lanczos spectrum. This analysis suggests a notion of eigenstate complexity, the statistics of which differentiate integrable systems and classes of quantum chaos. Finally, we clarify the relation between spread complexity and the universality classes of RMT by exploring various values of the Dyson index and Poisson distributed spectra.
The Hungarian physicist Eugene Wigner introduced random matrix models in physics to describe the energy spectra of atomic nuclei. As such, the main goal of random matrix theory (RMT) has been to derive the eigenvalue statistics of matrices drawn from a given distribution. The Wigner approach gives powerful insights into the properties of complex, chaotic systems in thermal equilibrium. Another Hungarian, Cornelius Lanczos, suggested a method of reducing the dynamics of any quantum system to a one-dimensional chain by tridiagonalizing the Hamiltonian relative to a given initial state. In the resulting matrix, the diagonal and off-diagonal Lanczos coefficients control transition amplitudes between elements of a distinguished basis of states. We connect these two approaches to the quantum mechanics of complex systems by deriving analytical formulas relating the potential defining a general RMT, or, equivalently, its density of states, to the Lanczos coefficients and their correlations. In particular, we derive an integral relation between the average Lanczos coefficients and the density of states, and, for polynomial potentials, algebraic equations that determine the Lanczos coefficients from the potential. We obtain these results for generic initial states in the thermodynamic limit. As an application, we compute the time-dependent ``spread complexity'' in thermofield double states and the spectral form factor for Gaussian and non-Gaussian RMTs.
Abstract In an isolated system, the time evolution of a given observable in the Heisenberg picture can be efficiently represented in Krylov space. In this representation, an initial operator becomes increasingly complex as time goes by, a feature that can be quantified by the Krylov complexity. We introduce a fundamental and universal limit to the growth of the Krylov complexity by formulating a Robertson uncertainty relation, involving the Krylov complexity operator and the Liouvillian, as generator of time evolution. We further show the conditions for this bound to be saturated and illustrate its validity in paradigmatic models of quantum chaos.
The complexity of quantum evolutions can be understood by examining their dispersion in a chosen basis. Recent research has stressed the fact that the Krylov basis is particularly adept at minimizing this dispersion [V. Balasubramanian et al, Physical Review D 106, 046007 (2022)]. This property assigns a central role to the Krylov basis in the investigation of quantum chaos. Here, we delve into the transition from integrability to chaos using the Krylov approach, employing an Ising spin chain and a banded random matrix model as our testing models. Our findings indicate that both the saturation of Krylov complexity and the dispersion of the Lanczos coefficients can exhibit a significant dependence on the initial condition. However, both quantities can gauge dynamical quantum chaos with a proper choice of the initial state.
The complexity of quantum evolutions can be understood by examining their spread in a chosen basis. Recent research has stressed the fact that the Krylov basis is particularly adept at minimizing this spread [Balasubramanian et al., Phys. Rev. D 106, 046007 (2022)2470-001010.1103/PhysRevD.106.046007]. This property assigns a central role to the Krylov basis in the investigation of quantum chaos. Here, we delve into the transition from integrability to chaos using the Krylov approach, employing an Ising spin chain and a banded random matrix model as our testing models. Our findings indicate that both the saturation of Krylov complexity and the spread of the Lanczos coefficients can exhibit a significant dependence on the initial condition. However, both quantities can gauge dynamical quantum chaos with a proper choice of the initial state.