Applications of Effective Field Theories to the Many-Body Nuclear Problem and Frustrated Spin Chains

C. E. Price

Federico Raffaele De Filippi, Antonio Francesco Mello, Daniel Sacco Shaikh +3 more

Spin 1/2 quantum spin chains represent the prototypical model for coupled two-level systems. Consequently, they offer a fertile playground for both fundamental and technological applications ranging from the theory of thermalization to quantum computation. Recently, it has been shown that interesting phenomena are associated to the boundary conditions imposed on the quantum spin chains via the so-called topological frustration. In this work, we analyze the effects of such frustration on a few-spin system, with a particular focus on the strong even–odd effects induced in the ground-state energy. We then implement a topologically frustrated quantum spin chain on a quantum computer to show that our predictions are visible on current quantum hardware platforms.

T.T.S. Kuo

R. J. Furnstahl

The study of quantum chromodynamics (QCD) over the past quarter century has had relatively little impact on the traditional approach to the low-energy nuclear many-body problem. Recent developments are changing this situation. New experimental capabilities and theoretical approaches are opening windows into the richness of many-body phenomena in QCD. A common theme is the use of effective field theory (EFT) methods, which exploit the separation of scales in physical systems. At low energies, effective field theory can explain how existing phenomenology emerges from QCD and how to refine it systematically. More generally, the application of EFT methods to many-body problems promises insight into the analytic structure of observables, the identification of new expansion parameters, and a consistent organisation of many-body corrections, with reliable error estimates.

A. Schwenk, János Polonyi

R. J. Furnstahl