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Thermalization and relaxation after a quantum quench in disordered Hamiltonians

Simone Ziraldo

Published Nov 18, 2013• 1 citation
OpenAlex

Abstract

In the present thesis we study the unitary dynamics and the thermalization properties of free-fermion-like Hamiltonians after a sudden quantum quench in presence of disorder. With analytical and numerical arguments, we show that the existence of a stationary state and its description with a generalized Gibbs ensemble (GGE) depend crucially on the observable considered (local versus extensive, one-body versus many-body) and on the localization properties of the final Hamiltonian. We then show an extension of the Wang-Landau algorithm which allows the computation of weighted distributions associated to quantum quenches, like the diagonal and the GGE ensemble expectation-value distributions. We present results on three one-dimensional models, the Anderson model, a disordered one-dimensional fermionic chain with long-range hopping, and the disordered Ising/XY spin chain.

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In the present thesis we study the unitary dynamics and the thermalization properties of free-fermion-like Hamiltonians after a sudden quantum quench in presence of disorder. With analytical and numerical arguments, we show that the existence of a stationary state and its description with a generalized Gibbs ensemble (GGE) depend crucially on the observable considered (local versus extensive, one-body versus many-body) and on the localization properties of the final Hamiltonian. We then show an extension of the Wang-Landau algorithm which allows the computation of weighted distributions associated to quantum quenches, like the diagonal and the GGE ensemble expectation-value distributions. We present results on three one-dimensional models, the Anderson model, a disordered one-dimensional fermionic chain with long-range hopping, and the disordered Ising/XY spin chain.
We study the unitary dynamics and the thermalization properties of free-fermion-like Hamiltonians after a sudden quantum quench, extending the results of S. Ziraldo et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 109, 247205 (2012)]. With analytical and numerical arguments, we show that the existence of a stationary state and its description with a generalized Gibbs ensemble (GGE) depend crucially on the observable considered (local versus extensive) and on the localization properties of the final Hamiltonian. We present results on two one-dimensional (1D) models, the disordered 1D fermionic chain with long-range hopping and the disordered Ising/XYXYXY spin chain. We analytically prove that, while time averages of one-body operators are perfectly reproduced by GGE (even for finite-size systems, if time integrals are extended beyond revivals), time averages of many-body operators might show clear deviations from the GGE prediction when disorder-induced localization of the eigenstates is at play.
We study the unitary relaxation dynamics of disordered spin chains following a sudden quench of the Hamiltonian. We give analytical arguments, corroborated by specific numerical examples, to show that the existence of a stationary state depends crucially on the spectral and localization properties of the final Hamiltonian, and not on the initial state. We test these ideas on integrable one-dimensional models of the Ising or XY class, but argue more generally on their validity for more complex (nonintegrable) models.
We present here an extension of the Wang–Landau Monte Carlo method which allows us to get very accurate estimates of the full probability distributions of several observables after a quantum quench for large systems, whenever the relevant matrix elements are calculable, but the full exponential complexity of the Hilbert space would make an exhaustive enumeration impossible beyond very limited sizes. We apply this method to quenches of free-fermion models with disorder, further corroborating the fact that a generalized Gibbs ensemble fails to capture the long-time average of many-body operators when disorder is present.
We consider dynamic (non-equal-time) correlation functions of local observables after a quantum quench. We show that, in the absence of long-range interactions in the final Hamiltonian, the dynamics is determined by the same ensemble that describes static (equal-time) correlations. For many integrable models, static correlation functions of local observables after a quantum quench relax to stationary values, which are described by a generalized Gibbs ensemble. The same generalized Gibbs ensemble then determines dynamic correlation functions, and the basic form of the fluctuation dissipation theorem holds, although the absorption and emission spectra are not simply related as in the thermal case. For quenches in the transverse field Ising chain, we derive explicit expressions for the time evolution of dynamic order parameter correlators after a quench.
We consider the time evolution of observables in the transverse-field Ising chain after a sudden quench of the magnetic field. We provide exact analytical results for the asymptotic time and distance dependence of one- and two-point correlation functions of the order parameter. We employ two complementary approaches based on asymptotic evaluations of determinants and form-factor sums. We prove that the stationary value of the two-point correlation function is not thermal, but can be described by a generalized Gibbs ensemble (GGE). The approach to the stationary state can also be understood in terms of a GGE. We present a conjecture on how these results generalize to particular quenches in other integrable models.
We consider quantum quenches in the so-called q -boson lattice model. We argue that the Generalized Eigenstate Thermalization Hypothesis holds in this model, therefore the Generalized Gibbs Ensemble (GGE) gives a valid description of the stationary states in the long time limit. For a special class of initial states (which are the pure Fock states in the local basis) we are able to provide the GGE predictions for the resulting root densities. We also give predictions for the long-time limit of certain local operators. In the q → ∞ limit the calculations simplify considerably, the wave functions are given by Schur polynomials and the overlaps with the initial states can be written as simple determinants. In two cases we prove rigorously that the GGE prediction for the root density is correct. Moreover, we calculate the exact time dependence of a physical observable (the one-site Emptiness Formation Probability) for the quench starting from the state with exactly one particle per site. In the long-time limit the GGE prediction is recovered.