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arXiv:2402.17627 · SciPost Physics

Many-body perturbation theory for strongly correlated effective Hamiltonians using effective field theory methods

Raphaël Photopoulos, Antoine Boulet

Published Jan 6, 2025• 0 citations
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Abstract

Introducing low-energy effective Hamiltonians is usual to grasp most correlations in quantum many-body problems. For instance, such effective Hamiltonians can be treated at the mean-field level to reproduce some physical properties of interest. Employing effective Hamiltonians that contain many-body correlations renders the use of perturbative many-body techniques difficult because of the overcounting of correlations. In this work, we develop a strategy to apply an extension of the many-body perturbation theory starting from an effective interaction that contains correlations beyond the mean-field level. The goal is to re-organize the many-body calculation to avoid the overcounting of correlations originating from the introduction of correlated effective Hamiltonians in the description. For this purpose, we generalize the formulation of the Rayleigh-Schrödinger perturbation theory by including free parameters adjusted to reproduce the appropriate limits. In particular, the expansion in the bare weak-coupling regime and the strong-coupling limit serves as a valuable input to fix the value of the free parameters appearing in the resulting expression. This method avoids double counting of correlations using beyond-mean-field strategies for the description of many-body systems. The ground state energy of various systems relevant for ultracold atomic, nuclear, and condensed matter physics is reproduced qualitatively beyond the domain of validity of the standard many-body perturbation theory. Finally, our method suggests interpreting the formal results obtained as an effective field theory using the proposed reorganization of the many-body calculation. The results, like ground state energies, are improved systematically by considering higher orders in the extended many-body perturbation theory while maintaining a straightforward polynomial expansion.

DOI
10.21468/scipostphys.18.1.003

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Introducing low-energy effective Hamiltonians is usual to grasp most correlations in quantum many-body problems. For instance, such effective Hamiltonians can be treated at the mean-field level to reproduce some physical properties of interest. Employing effective Hamiltonians that contain many-body correlations renders the use of perturbative many-body techniques difficult because of the overcounting of correlations. In this work, we develop a strategy to apply an extension of the many-body perturbation theory starting from an effective interaction that contains correlations beyond the mean-field level. The goal is to re-organize the many-body calculation to avoid the overcounting of correlations originating from the introduction of correlated effective Hamiltonians in the description. For this purpose, we generalize the formulation of the Rayleigh-Schrödinger perturbation theory by including free parameters adjusted to reproduce the appropriate limits. In particular, the expansion in the bare weak-coupling regime and the strong-coupling limit serves as a valuable input to fix the value of the free parameters appearing in the resulting expression. This method avoids double counting of correlations using beyond-mean-field strategies for the description of many-body systems. The ground state energy of various systems relevant for ultracold atomic, nuclear, and condensed matter physics is reproduced qualitatively beyond the domain of validity of the standard many-body perturbation theory. Finally, our method suggests interpreting the formal results obtained as an effective field theory using the proposed reorganization of the many-body calculation. The results, like ground state energies, are improved systematically by considering higher orders in the extended many-body perturbation theory while maintaining a straightforward polynomial expansion.
Strongly correlated quantum field theories present a formidable challenge to conventional theoretical methods, particularly those rooted in perturbative expansions. The breakdown of perturbation theory in regimes where interaction strengths are comparable to or exceed kinetic energies necessitates the development of non-perturbative approaches. This paper introduces and elaborates on a novel framework for diagrammatic renormalization specifically designed for strongly correlated quantum fields, moving beyond the limitations inherent in iterative or weak-coupling expansions. We explore how a systematic resummation of infinite classes of diagrams, guided by a functional renormalization group perspective, can capture the complex interplay of quantum fluctuations and emergent phenomena characteristic of these systems. Our approach leverages a self-consistent treatment of Green's functions and self-energies, allowing for the faithful description of spectral functions, phase transitions, and exotic ground states in a manner that traditional perturbation theory cannot. We discuss the theoretical underpinnings, computational strategies, and potential applications across diverse domains, including condensed matter physics, quantum chromodynamics, and ultracold atomic systems. The methodology aims to provide a robust, diagrammatically transparent pathway to understanding the non-trivial fixed points and scaling behaviors that govern strongly correlated phenomena, offering a powerful alternative where standard approximations fail.
Lattice field theory methods, usually associated with non-perturbative studies of quantum chromodynamics, are becoming increasingly common in the calculation of ground-state and thermal properties of strongly interacting non-relativistic few- and many-body systems, blurring the interfaces between condensed matter, atomic and low-energy nuclear physics. While some of these techniques have been in use in the area of condensed matter physics for a long time, others, such as hybrid Monte Carlo and improved effective actions, have only recently found their way across areas. With this topical review, we aim to provide a modest overview and a status update on a few notable recent developments. For the sake of brevity we focus on zero-temperature, non-relativistic problems. After a short introduction, we lay out some general considerations and proceed to discuss sampling algorithms, observables, and systematic effects. We show selected results on ground- and excited-state properties of fermions in the limit of unitarity. The appendix contains details on group theory on the lattice.
Lattice field theory methods, usually associated with non-perturbative studies of quantum chromodynamics, are becoming increasingly common in the calculation of ground-state and thermal properties of strongly interacting non-relativistic few- and many-body systems, blurring the interfaces between condensed matter, atomic and low-energy nuclear physics. While some of these techniques have been in use in the area of condensed matter physics for a long time, others, such as hybrid Monte Carlo and improved effective actions, have only recently found their way across areas. With this topical review, we aim to provide a modest overview and a status update on a few notable recent developments. For the sake of brevity we focus on zero-temperature, non-relativistic problems. After a short introduction, we lay out some general considerations and proceed to discuss sampling algorithms, observables, and systematic effects. We show selected results on ground- and excited-state properties of fermions in the limit of unitarity. The appendix contains details on group theory on the lattice.
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The method of correlated basis functions provides a means of systematically exploiting our intuitive understanding of real physical systems. Here we seek especially to develop a formalism for describing systems of strongly interacting fermions, for example, nuclei and liquid He3{\mathrm{He}}^{3}He3, using a complete set of correlated functions ${\ensuremath{\Psi}}_{\mathrm{m}}=\frac{F{\ensuremath{\Phi}}_{\mathrm{m}}}{{({\ensuremath{\Phi}}_{\mathrm{m}}, {F}^{2}{\ensuremath{\Phi}}_{\mathrm{m}})}^{\frac{1}{2}}}$. FFF is taken as a product of two-body factors, $\ensuremath{\Pi}{i<j}^{}[f({r}_{\mathrm{ij}})]$, the f(rij)f({r}_{\mathrm{ij}})f(rij​) embodying at least the correlations arising from strong short-range repulsions; and ${{\ensuremath{\Phi}}_{\mathrm{m}}}$, a set of independent-particle-model functions which might serve as a basis in the absence of highly singular interactions. The matrix elements Hmn{\mathfrak{H}}_{\mathrm{mn}}Hmn​, Nmn{\mathfrak{N}}_{\mathrm{mn}}Nmn​ of the Hamiltonian and identity operators with respect to the correlated basis ${{\ensuremath{\Psi}}_{\mathrm{m}}}$ are evaluated by generalization of cluster-expansion techniques developed originally for the calculation of the partition function of a classical imperfect gas and adapted to the quantum-mechanical many-body problem by Iwamoto and Yamada. Contributions to our expansions for the Hmn{\mathfrak{H}}_{\mathrm{mn}}Hmn​ are classified according to order of magnitude in the quantity $\ensuremath{\rho}\ensuremath{\omega}$, where $\ensuremath{\omega}=\ensuremath{\int}({f}^{2}(r)\ensuremath{-}1)d\mathrm{r}$ is a "correlation parameter" and $\ensuremath{\rho}$ the average particle density. To the extent that $|\ensuremath{\rho}\ensuremath{\omega}|$ is small, it provides a true expansion parameter. A detailed technical discussion of the cluster expansions is given, with special emphasis on their symmetry properties upon truncation. Although the many-body problem is soluble by simultaneous diagonalization of the matrices (Hmn{\mathfrak{H}}_{\mathrm{mn}}Hmn​) and (Nmn{\mathfrak{N}}_{\mathrm{mn}}Nmn​), it is preferable first to transform to an orthonormal basis of "unperturbed" correlated functions ${{\ensuremath{\Theta}}_{\mathrm{m}}}$ with respect to which the Hamiltonian and identity operators have the matrix representations (Hmn{H}_{\mathrm{mn}}Hmn​) and $({N}_{\mathrm{mn}})=({\ensuremath{\delta}}_{\mathrm{mn}})$, and then to attempt the separate diagonalization of (Hmn{H}_{\mathrm{mn}}Hmn​). In general, such a transformation is expedited by the L\"owdin procedure carried out to the desired order in $\ensuremath{\rho}\ensuremath{\omega}$. However, a Schmidt orthogonalization scheme might prove more advantageous in specific cases. Field-theoretic techniques (of both perturbative and nonperturbative nature) may be brought to bear in the diagonalization of (Hmn{H}_{\mathrm{mn}}Hmn​). The inverse of the unitary transformation which takes the basis ${{\ensuremath{\Phi}}_{\mathrm{m}}}$ into the basis ${{\ensuremath{\Theta}}_{\mathrm{m}}}$, applied to the given singular Hamiltonian, leads---for any FFF in the class considered---to a non-singular "effective Hamiltonian." Following this formal cue, we set out to construct explicitly a second-quantized effective Hamiltonian which generates the same matrix elements, to prescribed order in $\ensuremath{\rho}\ensuremath{\omega}$, when operating between independent-particle kets of the model occupation-number representation, as does the given Hamiltonian in the configuration-space representation, between the corresponding correlated functions of the L\"owdin basis. The quasiparticles described by this effective Hamiltonian interact via well-behaved two-body, three-body, \ifmmode\cdot\else\textperiodcentered\fi{}\ifmmode\cdot\else\textperiodcentered\fi{}\ifmmode\cdot\else\textperiodcentered\fi{}, QQQ-body, \ifmmode\cdot\else\textperiodcentered\fi{}\ifmmode\cdot\else\textperiodcentered\fi{}\ifmmode\cdot\else\textperiodcentered\fi{} potentials, in contrast to the highly singular two-body interactions of the real particles. For small $|\ensuremath{\rho}\ensuremath{\omega}|$, the effective two-body forces predominate. An avenue to deeper understanding of the applicability of the nuclear-shell model and the dressed-quasiparticle theory of liquid He3{\mathrm{He}}^{3}He3 has been opened. This article treats only the formalism for a uniform extended medium. Numerical calculations, as well as the extension of the method to finite systems, will follow.
We introduce cluster-based mean-field, perturbation and coupled-cluster theories to describe the ground state of strongly-correlated spin systems. In cluster mean-field, the ground state wavefunction is written as a simple tensor product of optimized cluster states. The cluster-language and the mean-field nature of the ansatz allows for a straightforward improvement based on perturbation theory and coupled-cluster, to account for inter-cluster correlations. We present benchmark calculations on the 2D square J1−J2J_1-J_2J1​−J2​ Heisenberg model, using cluster mean-field, second-order perturbation theory and coupled-cluster. We also present an extrapolation scheme that allows us to compute thermodynamic limit energies very accurately. Our results indicate that, even with relatively small clusters, the correlated methods can provide an accurate description of the Heisenberg model in the regimes considered. Some ways to improve the results presented in this work are discussed.