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Journal of Physics A Mathematical and General

Finite-size scaling and universality in the spectrum of the quantum ising chain. I. Periodic and antiperiodic boundary condition

Malte Henkel

Published Mar 11, 1987• 47 citations
Publisher

Abstract

The spectrum of the quantum Ising chain is studied in the finite-size scaling limit for periodic and antiperiodic boundary conditions. The finite-size corrections are computed for all energy gaps. The results of the model are used to test the Privman-Fisher universality hypothesis and conformal theory. At the critical point, it is shown how to build the spectrum from the irreducible representations of the Virasoro algebra. In addition, the author finds evidence for an unsuspected symmetry for systems both non-critical and of finite size.

DOI
10.1088/0305-4470/20/4/033

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The spectrum of the quantum Ising chain is studied in the finite-size scaling limit for periodic and antiperiodic boundary conditions. The finite-size corrections are computed for all energy gaps. The results of the model are used to test the Privman-Fisher universality hypothesis and conformal theory. At the critical point, it is shown how to build the spectrum from the irreducible representations of the Virasoro algebra. In addition, the author finds evidence for an unsuspected symmetry for systems both non-critical and of finite size.
I study the universal finite-size scaling function for the lowest gap of the quantum Ising chain with a one-parameter family of ``defect'' boundary conditions, which includes periodic, open, and antiperiodic boundary conditions as special cases. The universal behavior can be described by the Majorana fermion field theory in 1+11+11+1 dimensions, with the mass proportional to the deviation from the critical point. Although the field theory appears to be symmetric with respect to the inversion of the mass (Kramers-Wannier duality), the actual gap is asymmetric, reflecting the spontaneous symmetry breaking in the ordered phase which leads to the two-fold ground-state degeneracy in the thermodynamic limit. The asymptotic ground-state degeneracy in the ordered phase is realized by (i) formation of a bound state at the defect (except for the periodic/antiperiodic boundary condition) and (ii) effective reversal of the fermion number parity in one of the sectors (except for the open boundary condition), resulting in a rather nontrivial crossover ``phase'' diagram in the space of the boundary condition (defect strength) and mass.
The Ising quantum chain with a peculiar twisted boundary condition is considered. This boundary condition, first introduced in the framework of the spin-1/2 XXZ Heisenberg quantum chain, is related to the duality transformation, which becomes a symmetry of the model at the critical point. Thus, at the critical point, the Ising quantum chain with the duality-twisted boundary is translationally invariant, as in the case of the usual periodic or antiperiodic boundary conditions. The complete energy spectrum of the Ising quantum chain is calculated analytically for finite systems, and the conformal properties of the scaling limit are investigated. This provides an explicit example of a conformal twisted boundary condition and a corresponding generalized twisted partition function.
We present the finite-size scaling theory of one-dimensional quantum critical systems in the presence of boundaries. While the finite-size spectrum in the conformal limit, namely of a conformal field theory with conformally invariant boundary conditions, is related to the dimensions of boundary operators by Cardy, the actual spectra of lattice models are affected by both bulk and boundary perturbations and contain non-universal boundary energies. We obtain a general expression of the finite-size energy levels in the presence of bulk and boundary perturbations. In particular, a generic boundary perturbation related to the energy-momentum tensor gives rise to a renormalization of the effective system size. We verify our field-theory formulation by comparing the results with the exact solution of the critical transverse-field Ising chain and with accurate numerical results on the critical three-state Potts chain obtained by Density-Matrix Renormalization Group.
Abstract. The Ising quantum chain with a peculiar twisted boundary condition is considered. This boundary condition, first introduced in the framework of the spin-1/2 XXZ Heisenberg quantum chain, is related to the duality transformation, which becomes a symmetry of the model at the critical point. Thus, at the critical point, the Ising quantum chain with the duality-twisted boundary is translationally invariant, similar as in the case of the usual periodic or antiperiodic boundary conditions. The complete energy spectrum of the Ising quantum chain is calculated analytically for finite systems, and the conformal properties of the scaling limit are investigated. This provides an explicit example of a conformal twisted boundary condition and a corresponding generalised twisted partition function. PACS numbers: 05.50.+q, 75.10.Jm, 71.10.Fd, 11.25.Hf Recently, there has been a lot of interest in generalised twisted partition functions of conformal field theory [1, 2, 3, 4] and the corresponding conformal twisted boundary conditions in solvable lattice models of statistical mechanics [5]. Examples of such boundary conditions leading to the appearance of “exotic ” spinor operators in the