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Journal of Physics Conference Series

Studies on the Rabi Model

H. Q. Lin, M. X. Liu, Stefano Chesi, Hong‐Gang Luo

Published Feb 1, 2019• 2 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We present our recent studies on the quantum Rabi model (QRM). Firstly, by using a variational wave function, which facilitates to extract physics in entire parameter regime with high accuracy, we unveil a ground-state phase diagram of the QRM and argue that the main constituents are polaron and anti-polaron. Secondly, introducing an anisotropy into the QRM, in which the rotating- and counter-rotating terms are allowed to have different coupling strength, we explore that how the criticality of the model interpolates between two known limits with distinct universal properties. Through a combination of analytic and numerical approaches we compute phase diagram, scaling functions and critical exponents, and establish that the universality class at the finite anisotropy is the same as that of the isotropic limit.

DOI
10.1088/1742-6596/1163/1/012003

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We present our recent studies on the quantum Rabi model (QRM). Firstly, by using a variational wave function, which facilitates to extract physics in entire parameter regime with high accuracy, we unveil a ground-state phase diagram of the QRM and argue that the main constituents are polaron and anti-polaron. Secondly, introducing an anisotropy into the QRM, in which the rotating- and counter-rotating terms are allowed to have different coupling strength, we explore that how the criticality of the model interpolates between two known limits with distinct universal properties. Through a combination of analytic and numerical approaches we compute phase diagram, scaling functions and critical exponents, and establish that the universality class at the finite anisotropy is the same as that of the isotropic limit.
We investigate the quantum phase transition of the anisotropic quantum Rabi model, in which the rotating and counterrotating terms are allowed to have different coupling strengths. The model interpolates between two known limits with distinct universal properties. Through a combination of analytic and numerical approaches, we extract the phase diagram, scaling functions, and critical exponents, which determine the universality class at finite anisotropy (identical to the isotropic limit). We also reveal other interesting features, including a superradiance-induced freezing of the effective mass and discontinuous scaling functions in the Jaynes-Cummings limit. Our findings are extended to the few-body quantum phase transitions with N>1 spins, where we expose the same effective parameters, scaling properties, and phase diagram. Thus, a stronger form of universality is established, valid from N=1 up to the thermodynamic limit.
The Rabi model plays a fundamental role in understanding light-matter interaction. It reduces to the Jaynes-Cummings model via the rotating-wave approximation, which is applicable only to the cases of near resonance and weak coupling. However, recent experimental breakthroughs in upgrading light-matter coupling order require understanding the physics of the full quantum Rabi model (QRM). Despite the fact that its integrability and energy spectra have been exactly obtained, the challenge to formulate an exact wave function in a general case still hinders physical exploration of the QRM. Here we unveil a ground-state phase diagram of the QRM, consisting of a quadpolaron and a bipolaron as well as their changeover in the weak-, strong-, and intermediate-coupling regimes, respectively. An unexpected overweighted antipolaron is revealed in the quadpolaron state, and a hidden scaling behavior relevant to symmetry breaking is found in the bipolaron state. An experimentally accessible parameter is proposed to test these states, which might provide novel insights into the nature of the light-matter interaction for all regimes of the coupling strengths.
We employ a polaron picture to investigate the properties of the two-photon quantum Rabi model (QRM), which describes a two-level or spin-half system coupled with a single bosonic mode by a two-photon process. In the polaron picture, the coupling in the two-photon process leads to spin-related asymmetry so that the original single bosonic mode splits into two separated frequency modes for the opposite spins, which correspond to two bare polarons. Importantly, the tunneling causes these two bare polarons to exchange their components with each other, thus leading to additional induced polarons. According to this picture, the variational ground-state wave function of the two-photon QRM can be correctly constructed, with the ground-state energy and other physical observables in good agreement with the exact numerics in all the coupling regimes. Furthermore, generalization to multiple induced polarons involving higher orders in the tunneling effect provides a systematic way to yield a rapid convergence in accuracy even around the difficult spectral collapse point. In addition, the polaron picture provides a distinctive understanding of an incomplete spectral collapse behavior that is about the existence of discrete energy levels apart from the collapsed spectrum at the spectral collapse point. This work illustrates that the polaron picture is helpful to capture the key physics in this nonlinear light-matter interaction model and indicates that this method can be applicable to more complicated QRM-related models.
The experimental access to ultra-strong couplings in light-matter interactions has made the quantum phase transition (QPT) in the quantum Rabi model practically relevant, while the physics of the QPT has not yet been fully explored. The polaron picture is a method capable of analyzing in the entire coupling regime and extracting the essential physics behind the QPT. However, the asymmetric deformation of polarons is missing in the current polaron picture. In the present work we propose an improved variational method in asymmetric polaron picture (APP). Our APP not only increases the method accuracy but also reveals more underlying physics concerning the QPT. We find that in the ground state both the polarons and antipolarons are asymmetrically deformed to a large extent, which leads to a richer phase diagram. We also analyze the first excited state in which we unveil an asymmetry direction reversal for the polarons and an attraction/replusion transition differently from the ground state. Finally, we apply the APP in quantum Fisher information analysis and critical coupling extraction, the improvements indicate that the polaron asymmetry makes a considerable contribution to the quantum resource in quantum metrology and plays an unnegligible role in the QPT. Our results and mechanism clarifications expose more subtle energy competitions and abundant physics, and the method potentially might have broader applications in light-matter interactions.
Abstract The light–matter interaction not only is ubiquitous in nature but also can be simulated in various artificial systems. Besides the tunability of artificial quantum systems, the experimental access to the ultra‐strong and even deep‐strong couplings has brought a regime with novel phenomenology. Theoretically the finding of the integrability for the quantum Rabi model (QRM) has attracted tremendous attention to the study of the QRM and its extensions which are fundamental models of the light–matter interaction. With the continuing enhancements of coupling strengths, a most fascinating phenomenon of these light–matter models is that they can exhibit few‐body quantum phase transitions (QPTs), while a full understanding of these QPTs is a challenge. The polaron picture is a method capable of analyzing these fundamental models in the entire coupling regime and extracting the essential physics behind the QPTs. A review of its extensive applications on the fundamental light–matter models is presented, with discussions on the phase diagrams and QPT‐related features. The universality of critical exponent of the anisotropic QRM as well as the possibility of QPTs in A 2 terms are also addressed.
We investigate the nonequilibrium steady state of the anisotropic open quantum Rabi model, which exhibits first-order and second-order dissipative phase transitions upon varying the degree of anisotropy between the coupling strengths of rotating and counter-rotating terms. Using both semiclassical and quantum approaches, we find a rich phase diagram resulting from the interplay between the anisotropy and the dissipation. First, there exists a bistable phase where both the normal and superradiant phases are stable. Second, there are multicritical points where the phase boundaries for the first- and second-order phase transitions meet. We show that a new set of critical exponents governs the scaling of the multicritical points. Finally, we discuss the feasibility of observing the multicritical transitions and bistability using a pair of trapped ions where the anisotropy can be tuned by controlling the intensity of the Raman transitions. Our study enlarges the scope of critical phenomena that may occur in finite-component quantum systems, which could be useful for applications in critical quantum sensing. Published by the American Physical Society 2024