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From the smoothness of the initial state to that of the autocorrelation function

Ke Yang, J. M. Zhang

Published Nov 28, 2018• 0 citations
OpenAlex

Abstract

We point out that by the ``smoothness means fast decay'' principle in Fourier analysis, it is possible to infer the smoothness (or nonsmoothness) of the autocorrelation function from a mere glimpse of the initial state. Specifically, for a generic system with smooth eigenstates, the smoother an initial state is, the faster its decomposition coefficients with respect to the eigenstates of the system decay, and in turn the smoother the autocorrelation function is. The idea is illustrated with three increasingly smooth functions in an infinite square well. By using the Mellin transform, we also find that the nonsmoothness or singularity of the initial state affects the short-time behavior of its autocorrelation function. In particular, a sufficiently nonsmooth or singular initial state could decay in a nonquadratic power law, with the exponent continuously tunable. We now understand the periodic cusps of the autocorrelation function in the quench dynamics of a Bloch state, which was observed previously [Zhang and Yang, EPL 114, 60001 (2016)].

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We point out that by the ``smoothness means fast decay'' principle in Fourier analysis, it is possible to infer the smoothness (or nonsmoothness) of the autocorrelation function from a mere glimpse of the initial state. Specifically, for a generic system with smooth eigenstates, the smoother an initial state is, the faster its decomposition coefficients with respect to the eigenstates of the system decay, and in turn the smoother the autocorrelation function is. The idea is illustrated with three increasingly smooth functions in an infinite square well. By using the Mellin transform, we also find that the nonsmoothness or singularity of the initial state affects the short-time behavior of its autocorrelation function. In particular, a sufficiently nonsmooth or singular initial state could decay in a nonquadratic power law, with the exponent continuously tunable. We now understand the periodic cusps of the autocorrelation function in the quench dynamics of a Bloch state, which was observed previously [Zhang and Yang, EPL 114, 60001 (2016)].
From the analysis of the relaxation process of isolated lattice many-body quantum systems quenched far from equilibrium, we deduce a criterion for predicting when they are certain to thermalize. It is based on the algebraic behavior $\ensuremath{\propto}{t}^{\ensuremath{-}\ensuremath{\gamma}}$ of the survival probability at long times. We show that the value of the power-law exponent $\ensuremath{\gamma}$ depends on the shape and filling of the weighted energy distribution of the initial state. Two scenarios are explored in detail: $\ensuremath{\gamma}\ensuremath{\ge}2$ and $\ensuremath{\gamma}<1$. Exponents $\ensuremath{\gamma}\ensuremath{\ge}2$ imply that the energy distribution of the initial state is ergodically filled and the eigenstates are uncorrelated, so thermalization is guaranteed to happen. In this case, the power-law behavior is caused by bounds in the energy spectrum. Decays with $\ensuremath{\gamma}<1$ emerge when the energy eigenstates are correlated and signal lack of ergodicity. They are typical of systems undergoing localization due to strong onsite disorder and are found also in clean integrable systems.
Abstract We point out that by the ‘smoothness means fast decay’ principle in Fourier analysis, it is possible to infer the smoothness (or nonsmoothness) of the autocorrelation function from a mere glimpse of the initial state. Specifically, for a generic system with smooth eigenstates, the smoother an initial state is, the faster its decomposition coefficients with respect to the eigenstates of the system decay, and in turn the smoother the autocorrelation function is. The idea is illustrated with three increasingly smooth functions in an infinite square well. By using the Mellin transform, we also find that the nonsmoothness or singularity of the initial state affects the short-time behavior of its autocorrelation function. In particular, a sufficiently nonsmooth or singular initial state could decay in a nonquadratic power law, with the exponent continuously tunable. We now understand the periodic cusps of the autocorrelation function in the quench dynamics of a Bloch state, which was observed previously (Zhang and Yang 2016 Europhys. Lett . 114 60001).
We report some nonsmooth dynamics of a Bloch state in a one-dimensional tight binding model with the periodic boundary condition. After a sudden change of the potential of an arbitrary site, quantities like the survival probability of the particle in the initial Bloch state show cusps periodically, with the period being the Heisenberg time associated with the energy spectrum. This phenomenon is a nonperturbative counterpart of the nonsmooth dynamics observed previously (Z hang J. M. and H aque M., arXiv:1404.4280) in a periodically driven tight binding model. Underlying the cusps is an exactly solvable model, which consists of equally spaced levels extending from − ∞ to + ∞ , between which two arbitrary levels are coupled to each other by the same strength.