Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Log inSign up
Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Blog
Job Board
Q3AS

© 2026 Aqora Quantum S.A.S.

TermsPrivacyLegal Notice

arXiv:2609.06857

Geometric Phases in Two-Level Mixing: From Neutral Mesons to Holonomic Qubits and Topological Majorana Modes

Swarup Sangiri, Utpal Sarkar, A Taraphder

hep-phcond-mat.otherquant-phSubmitted Sep 6, 2026• Announced Sep 8, 2026• 0 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

We investigate the geometric structure of a Hermitian two-level mixing Hamiltonian motivated by neutral meson oscillations and its connections with qubit, fermionic, and topological descriptions. Mapping the Hamiltonian to an effective qubit representation, we analyze the geometric phase associated with cyclic parameter evolution on the Bloch sphere. Without identifying the complex mixing phase with a physical CP-violation observable, we interpret it as a CP-like geometric parameter controlling the azimuthal orientation of the Hamiltonian vector and its reversal under phase conjugation. Third-order Bargmann invariants constructed from the eigenstates yield an associated discrete phase whose dependence on the mixing parameters is examined alongside the continuous geometric construction. The cyclic evolution is also represented as a single-qubit $R_z$ phase operation and expressed through Majorana bilinears. Extending the construction to the momentum-dependent Bogoliubov-de Gennes Hamiltonian of the Kitaev chain, we relate momentum-space winding to the topological regimes and the quantized Berry (Zak) phase in the real-parameter model, while the corresponding Bargmann construction approaches the global phase in the continuum limit. Together, these results provide a geometric perspective connecting phase structure, qubit operations, fermionic representations, and momentum-space topology within related two-level Hamiltonians.

Comments
21 pages, 4 figures

Related papers

Covariant formulation of the Berry connection in non-Hermitian systems

Ievgen I. Arkhipov

Non-Hermitian systems exhibit spectral and topological phenomena absent in Hermitian physics; however, their geometric characterization remains subtle due to the intrinsic ambiguity of biorthogonal eigenspaces. Since left and right eigenvectors are not related by Hermitian conjugation, the associated Berry connection is generally nonunique, leading to complex geometric phases and ambiguously defined holonomies. Here, we formulate a covariant geometric framework for non-Hermitian quantum systems based on the metric structure of the underlying Hilbert space. We show that, in the quantum regime with continuous state evolution, the conventional Berry connection and the associated Berry holonomy over closed parameter-space loops can be consistently defined only in the pseudo-Hermitian limit, where the spectrum is real. For generic non-Hermitian Hamiltonians with complex spectra, the relevant geometric object is instead the Aharonov-Anandan holonomy associated with cyclic evolution in projective Hilbert space. Within the pseudo-Hermitian regime, we construct a unique Hermitian Berry connection that is covariant under arbitrary GL(N,C) frame transformations and reduces to the standard Berry connection in the Hermitian limit. The resulting formalism separates the intrinsic geometry of the Hamiltonian eigenspace from contributions arising from the parameter dependence of the Hilbert-space metric, revealing that the conventional biorthogonal formulation generally mixes these distinct geometric effects. Consequently, geometric phases, synthetic gauge fields, and topological characteristics commonly attributed to non-Hermitian eigenspace geometry may, in part, originate from the underlying metric structure. Our framework therefore provides a consistent geometric foundation for Berry phases, non-Abelian holonomies, and topological invariants in non-Hermitian quantum systems.

Physical Review Research•Jul 9, 2026•0 citations

Covariant formulation of the Berry connection in non-Hermitian systems

Ievgen I. Arkhipov

Non-Hermitian systems exhibit spectral and topological phenomena absent in Hermitian physics; however, their geometric characterization remains subtle due to the intrinsic ambiguity of biorthogonal eigenspaces. Since left and right eigenvectors are not related by Hermitian conjugation, the associated Berry connection is generally nonunique, leading to complex geometric phases and ambiguously defined holonomies. Here we formulate a covariant geometric framework for non-Hermitian quantum systems based on the metric structure of the underlying Hilbert space. We show that, in the quantum regime with continuous state evolution, the conventional Berry connection and the associated Berry holonomy over closed parameter-space loops can be consistently defined only in the pseudo-Hermitian limit, where the spectrum is real. For generic non-Hermitian Hamiltonians with complex spectra, the relevant geometric object is instead the Aharonov--Anandan holonomy associated with cyclic evolution in projective Hilbert space. Within the pseudo-Hermitian regime, we construct a unique Hermitian Berry connection that is covariant under arbitrary ${\rm GL}(N,\mathbb C)$ frame transformations and reduces to the standard Berry connection in the Hermitian limit. The resulting formalism separates the intrinsic geometry of the Hamiltonian eigenspace from contributions arising from the parameter dependence of the Hilbert-space metric, revealing that the conventional biorthogonal formulation generally mixes these distinct geometric effects. Consequently, geometric phases, synthetic gauge fields, and topological characteristics commonly attributed to non-Hermitian eigenspace geometry may, in part, originate from the underlying metric structure. Our framework therefore provides a consistent geometric foundation for Berry phases, non-Abelian holonomies, and topological invariants in non-Hermitian quantum systems.

quant-pharXiv:2601.19777•Physical Review Research•Jan 28, 2026•0 citations

Covariant formulation of the Berry connection in non-Hermitian systems

Ievgen I. Arkhipov

Non-Hermitian systems exhibit spectral and topological phenomena absent in Hermitian physics; however, their geometric characterization remains subtle due to the intrinsic ambiguity of biorthogonal eigenspaces. Since left and right eigenvectors are not related by Hermitian conjugation, the associated Berry connection is generally nonunique, leading to complex geometric phases and ambiguously defined holonomies. Here, we formulate a covariant geometric framework for non-Hermitian quantum systems based on the metric structure of the underlying Hilbert space. We show that, in the quantum regime with continuous state evolution, the conventional Berry connection and the associated Berry holonomy over closed parameter-space loops can be consistently defined only in the pseudo-Hermitian limit, where the spectrum is real. For generic non-Hermitian Hamiltonians with complex spectra, the relevant geometric object is instead the Aharonov-Anandan holonomy associated with cyclic evolution in projective Hilbert space. Within the pseudo-Hermitian regime, we construct a unique Hermitian Berry connection that is covariant under arbitrary GL(N,C) frame transformations and reduces to the standard Berry connection in the Hermitian limit. The resulting formalism separates the intrinsic geometry of the Hamiltonian eigenspace from contributions arising from the parameter dependence of the Hilbert-space metric, revealing that the conventional biorthogonal formulation generally mixes these distinct geometric effects. Consequently, geometric phases, synthetic gauge fields, and topological characteristics commonly attributed to non-Hermitian eigenspace geometry may, in part, originate from the underlying metric structure. Our framework therefore provides a consistent geometric foundation for Berry phases, non-Abelian holonomies, and topological invariants in non-Hermitian quantum systems.

Physical Review Research•Jul 9, 2026•0 citations

Expressing CP Violation in Terms of Bargmann Invariants and Geometric Phases in Kaon Decays and Baryogenesis

Swarup Sangiri

We studied the CP violating phases in the neutral kaon oscillations and decays in the effective field theory of kaons, without going into the quark level, and connected the CP violating parameters to the Bargmann invariants and hence to the geometric phases. We extended this approach to demonstrate how the CP violating parameters appearing in the process of baryogenesis are related to the Bargmann invariants, and hence with the geometric phases of those systems. We then concluded on the applications of such a generalized treatment of CP violating phases.

International Conference on High Energy Physics (ICHEP)•Dec 17, 2024•0 citations

Phase dynamics of entangled qubits

P. Milman

We make a geometric study of the phases acquired by a general, pure bipartite two-level system after a cyclic unitary evolution. The geometric representation of the two particle Hilbert space makes use of Hopf fibrations. It allows for a simple description of the dynamics of the entangled state's phase during the whole evolution. The global phase after a cyclic evolution is always an entire multiple of $\ensuremath{\pi}$ for all bipartite states, a result that does not depend on the degree of entanglement. There are three different types of phases combining themselves so as to result in the $n\ensuremath{\pi}$ global phase. They can be identified as dynamical, geometrical, and topological. Each one of them can be easily identified using the presented geometric description. The interplay between them depends on the initial state and on its trajectory, and the results obtained are shown to be in connection to those on mixed state phases.

arXiv:quant-ph/0608114•Physical Review A•Jun 30, 2006•40 citations

Observation of geometric phases for three-level systems using NMR interferometry

Hongwei Chen, Ming-Guang Hu, Jing‐Ling Chen +1 more

Inspired by the optical experimental scheme [Phys. Rev. Lett. 86, 369 (2001)], we propose and implement a NMR experiment to observe an Abelian geometric phase shift arising from the cyclic evolution of U(2)-invariant states. Such a phase shift geometrically refers to the Bargmann invariant in a four-dimensional SU(3)/U(2) parameter space, while the usual geometric phases arise in the evolution of U(1)-invariant states and is related to solid angles in a two-dimensional $\text{SU}(2)/\text{U}(1)\ensuremath{\approx}{S}^{2}$ parameter space (or Poincar\'e sphere). We present the experiment in a four-level system and investigate its topological invariance for different circuits. This may provide a realistic candidate to design complex geometric quantum circuits for future quantum computers.

arXiv:0804.1022•Physical Review A•Nov 10, 2009•21 citations
We investigate the geometric structure of a Hermitian two-level mixing Hamiltonian motivated by neutral meson oscillations and its connections with qubit, fermionic, and topological descriptions. Mapping the Hamiltonian to an effective qubit representation, we analyze the geometric phase associated with cyclic parameter evolution on the Bloch sphere. Without identifying the complex mixing phase with a physical CP-violation observable, we interpret it as a CP-like geometric parameter controlling the azimuthal orientation of the Hamiltonian vector and its reversal under phase conjugation. Third-order Bargmann invariants constructed from the eigenstates yield an associated discrete phase whose dependence on the mixing parameters is examined alongside the continuous geometric construction. The cyclic evolution is also represented as a single-qubit RzR_zRz​ phase operation and expressed through Majorana bilinears. Extending the construction to the momentum-dependent Bogoliubov-de Gennes Hamiltonian of the Kitaev chain, we relate momentum-space winding to the topological regimes and the quantized Berry (Zak) phase in the real-parameter model, while the corresponding Bargmann construction approaches the global phase in the continuum limit. Together, these results provide a geometric perspective connecting phase structure, qubit operations, fermionic representations, and momentum-space topology within related two-level Hamiltonians.
Non-Hermitian systems exhibit spectral and topological phenomena absent in Hermitian physics; however, their geometric characterization remains subtle due to the intrinsic ambiguity of biorthogonal eigenspaces. Since left and right eigenvectors are not related by Hermitian conjugation, the associated Berry connection is generally nonunique, leading to complex geometric phases and ambiguously defined holonomies. Here, we formulate a covariant geometric framework for non-Hermitian quantum systems based on the metric structure of the underlying Hilbert space. We show that, in the quantum regime with continuous state evolution, the conventional Berry connection and the associated Berry holonomy over closed parameter-space loops can be consistently defined only in the pseudo-Hermitian limit, where the spectrum is real. For generic non-Hermitian Hamiltonians with complex spectra, the relevant geometric object is instead the Aharonov-Anandan holonomy associated with cyclic evolution in projective Hilbert space. Within the pseudo-Hermitian regime, we construct a unique Hermitian Berry connection that is covariant under arbitrary GL(N,C) frame transformations and reduces to the standard Berry connection in the Hermitian limit. The resulting formalism separates the intrinsic geometry of the Hamiltonian eigenspace from contributions arising from the parameter dependence of the Hilbert-space metric, revealing that the conventional biorthogonal formulation generally mixes these distinct geometric effects. Consequently, geometric phases, synthetic gauge fields, and topological characteristics commonly attributed to non-Hermitian eigenspace geometry may, in part, originate from the underlying metric structure. Our framework therefore provides a consistent geometric foundation for Berry phases, non-Abelian holonomies, and topological invariants in non-Hermitian quantum systems.
Non-Hermitian systems exhibit spectral and topological phenomena absent in Hermitian physics; however, their geometric characterization remains subtle due to the intrinsic ambiguity of biorthogonal eigenspaces. Since left and right eigenvectors are not related by Hermitian conjugation, the associated Berry connection is generally nonunique, leading to complex geometric phases and ambiguously defined holonomies. Here we formulate a covariant geometric framework for non-Hermitian quantum systems based on the metric structure of the underlying Hilbert space. We show that, in the quantum regime with continuous state evolution, the conventional Berry connection and the associated Berry holonomy over closed parameter-space loops can be consistently defined only in the pseudo-Hermitian limit, where the spectrum is real. For generic non-Hermitian Hamiltonians with complex spectra, the relevant geometric object is instead the Aharonov--Anandan holonomy associated with cyclic evolution in projective Hilbert space. Within the pseudo-Hermitian regime, we construct a unique Hermitian Berry connection that is covariant under arbitrary GL(N,C){\rm GL}(N,\mathbb C)GL(N,C) frame transformations and reduces to the standard Berry connection in the Hermitian limit. The resulting formalism separates the intrinsic geometry of the Hamiltonian eigenspace from contributions arising from the parameter dependence of the Hilbert-space metric, revealing that the conventional biorthogonal formulation generally mixes these distinct geometric effects. Consequently, geometric phases, synthetic gauge fields, and topological characteristics commonly attributed to non-Hermitian eigenspace geometry may, in part, originate from the underlying metric structure. Our framework therefore provides a consistent geometric foundation for Berry phases, non-Abelian holonomies, and topological invariants in non-Hermitian quantum systems.
Non-Hermitian systems exhibit spectral and topological phenomena absent in Hermitian physics; however, their geometric characterization remains subtle due to the intrinsic ambiguity of biorthogonal eigenspaces. Since left and right eigenvectors are not related by Hermitian conjugation, the associated Berry connection is generally nonunique, leading to complex geometric phases and ambiguously defined holonomies. Here, we formulate a covariant geometric framework for non-Hermitian quantum systems based on the metric structure of the underlying Hilbert space. We show that, in the quantum regime with continuous state evolution, the conventional Berry connection and the associated Berry holonomy over closed parameter-space loops can be consistently defined only in the pseudo-Hermitian limit, where the spectrum is real. For generic non-Hermitian Hamiltonians with complex spectra, the relevant geometric object is instead the Aharonov-Anandan holonomy associated with cyclic evolution in projective Hilbert space. Within the pseudo-Hermitian regime, we construct a unique Hermitian Berry connection that is covariant under arbitrary GL(N,C) frame transformations and reduces to the standard Berry connection in the Hermitian limit. The resulting formalism separates the intrinsic geometry of the Hamiltonian eigenspace from contributions arising from the parameter dependence of the Hilbert-space metric, revealing that the conventional biorthogonal formulation generally mixes these distinct geometric effects. Consequently, geometric phases, synthetic gauge fields, and topological characteristics commonly attributed to non-Hermitian eigenspace geometry may, in part, originate from the underlying metric structure. Our framework therefore provides a consistent geometric foundation for Berry phases, non-Abelian holonomies, and topological invariants in non-Hermitian quantum systems.
We studied the CP violating phases in the neutral kaon oscillations and decays in the effective field theory of kaons, without going into the quark level, and connected the CP violating parameters to the Bargmann invariants and hence to the geometric phases. We extended this approach to demonstrate how the CP violating parameters appearing in the process of baryogenesis are related to the Bargmann invariants, and hence with the geometric phases of those systems. We then concluded on the applications of such a generalized treatment of CP violating phases.
We make a geometric study of the phases acquired by a general, pure bipartite two-level system after a cyclic unitary evolution. The geometric representation of the two particle Hilbert space makes use of Hopf fibrations. It allows for a simple description of the dynamics of the entangled state's phase during the whole evolution. The global phase after a cyclic evolution is always an entire multiple of $\ensuremath{\pi}$ for all bipartite states, a result that does not depend on the degree of entanglement. There are three different types of phases combining themselves so as to result in the $n\ensuremath{\pi}$ global phase. They can be identified as dynamical, geometrical, and topological. Each one of them can be easily identified using the presented geometric description. The interplay between them depends on the initial state and on its trajectory, and the results obtained are shown to be in connection to those on mixed state phases.
Inspired by the optical experimental scheme [Phys. Rev. Lett. 86, 369 (2001)], we propose and implement a NMR experiment to observe an Abelian geometric phase shift arising from the cyclic evolution of U(2)-invariant states. Such a phase shift geometrically refers to the Bargmann invariant in a four-dimensional SU(3)/U(2) parameter space, while the usual geometric phases arise in the evolution of U(1)-invariant states and is related to solid angles in a two-dimensional $\text{SU}(2)/\text{U}(1)\ensuremath{\approx}{S}^{2}$ parameter space (or Poincar\'e sphere). We present the experiment in a four-level system and investigate its topological invariance for different circuits. This may provide a realistic candidate to design complex geometric quantum circuits for future quantum computers.