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arXiv:2411.04360 · Physical review. B./Physical review. B

Gauge theory and mixed state criticality

Takamasa Ando, Shinsei Ryu, Masataka Watanabe

Published Feb 4, 2026• 7 citations
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Abstract

In mixed quantum states, the notion of symmetry is divided into two types: strong and weak symmetry. While spontaneous symmetry breaking (SSB) for a weak symmetry is detected by two-point correlation functions, SSB for a strong symmetry is characterized by the Renyi-2 correlators. In this work, we present a way to construct various SSB phases for strong symmetries, starting from the ground state phase diagram of lattice gauge theory models. In addition to introducing a new type of mixed-state topological phases, we provide models of the criticalities between them, including those with gapless symmetry-protected topological order. We clarify that the ground states of lattice gauge theories are purified states of the corresponding mixed SSB states. Our construction can be applied to any finite gauge theory and offers a framework to study quantum operations between mixed quantum phases.

DOI
10.1103/42dq-5xlf

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In mixed quantum states, the notion of symmetry is divided into two types: strong and weak symmetry. While spontaneous symmetry breaking (SSB) for a weak symmetry is detected by two-point correlation functions, SSB for a strong symmetry is characterized by the Renyi-2 correlators. In this work, we present a way to construct various SSB phases for strong symmetries, starting from the ground state phase diagram of lattice gauge theory models. In addition to introducing a new type of mixed-state topological phases, we provide models of the criticalities between them, including those with gapless symmetry-protected topological order. We clarify that the ground states of lattice gauge theories are purified states of the corresponding mixed SSB states. Our construction can be applied to any finite gauge theory and offers a framework to study quantum operations between mixed quantum phases.
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Spontaneous symmetry breaking (SSB) is the cornerstone of our understanding of quantum phases of matter. Recent works have generalized this concept to the domain of mixed states in open quantum systems, where symmetries can be realized in two distinct ways dubbed strong and weak. Novel intrinsically mixed phases of quantum matter can then be defined by the spontaneous breaking of strong symmetry down to weak symmetry. However, proposed order parameters for strong-to-weak SSB (based on mixed-state fidelities or purities) seem to require exponentially many copies of the state, raising the question: Is it possible to efficiently detect strong-to-weak SSB, in general? Here, we answer this question negatively in the paradigmatic cases of Z_{2} and U(1) symmetries. We construct ensembles of pseudorandom mixed states that do not break the strong symmetry yet are computationally indistinguishable from states that do. This rules out the existence of efficient state-agnostic protocols to detect strong-to-weak SSB.
There are two kinds of symmetries in quantum mixed states (QMSs) -- called strong and weak symmetries-- and studying their spontaneous symmetry breaking (SSB) pattern helps classify QMSs, which is an ongoing important issue. The authors study here a decohered cluster model with ${Z}_{2}\ensuremath{\bigotimes}{Z}_{2}$ symmetry and uncover two kinds of symmetry-protected topological (SPT) mixed states. Using doubled Hilbert formalism, they demonstrate a transition between the two states, named strong and double average SPT states, where the latter features coexisting SPT and SSB.
We explore the states of matter arising from the spontaneous symmetry breaking (SSB) of Z2\mathbb{Z}_2Z2​ non-onsite symmetries. In one spatial dimension, we construct a frustration-free lattice model exhibiting SSB of a non-onsite symmetry, which features the coexistence of two ground states with distinct symmetry-protected topological (SPT) orders. We analytically prove the two-fold ground-state degeneracy and the existence of a finite energy gap. Fixing the symmetry sector yields a long-range entangled ground state that features long-range correlations among non-invertible charged operators. We also present a constant-depth measurement-feedback protocol to prepare such a state with a constant success probability in the thermodynamic limit, which may be of independent interest. Under a symmetric deformation, the SSB persists up to a critical point, beyond which a gapless phase characterized by a conformal field theory emerges. In two spatial dimensions, the SSB of 1-form non-onsite symmetries leads to a long-range entangled state (SPT soup) - a condensate of 1d SPT along any closed loops. On a torus, there are four such locally indistinguishable states that exhibit algebraic correlations between local operators, which we derived via a mapping to the critical O(2)O(2)O(2) loop model. This constitutes an intriguing example of `topological quantum criticality'.
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