Understanding the properties of far-from-equilibrium quantum systems is becoming a major challenge of both fundamental and applied physics. For instance, the lack of thermalization in integrable and (many body) localized systems provides new insights in the understanding of the relaxation dynamics of quantum phases. On a more applicative side, the possibility of exploiting the properties of far-from-equilibrium states, for example in pump-probe experiments, opens unprecedented scenarios. The effort in providing a classification of far-from-equilibrium phases, in terms of local or topological order parameters, is hence intense. In this context, the concept of Dynamical Quantum Phase Transition (DQPT) has been introduced. A DQPT is (roughly) defined as a zero of the Loschmidt-Echo as a function of time and represents a natural non-equilibrium counterpart of a thermal phase transition. Here, we investigate the DQPTs occurring in the quantum xy chain subject to a quantum quench of finite duration. We show that the number of distinct DQPTs can vary as the duration of the quantum quench is varied. However, the parity of such number only depends on the pre-quench and post-quench Hamiltonians and is related to a topological invariant.
Understanding the properties of far-from-equilibrium quantum systems is becoming a major challenge of both fundamental and applied physics. For instance, the lack of thermalization in integrable and (many body) localized systems provides new insights in the understanding of the relaxation dynamics of quantum phases. On a more applicative side, the possibility of exploiting the properties of far-from-equilibrium states, for example in pump-probe experiments, opens unprecedented scenarios. The effort in providing a classification of far-from-equilibrium phases, in terms of local or topological order parameters, is hence intense. In this context, the concept of Dynamical Quantum Phase Transition (DQPT) has been introduced. A DQPT is (roughly) defined as a zero of the Loschmidt-Echo as a function of time and represents a natural non-equilibrium counterpart of a thermal phase transition. Here, we investigate the DQPTs occurring in the quantum xy chain subject to a quantum quench of finite duration. We show that the number of distinct DQPTs can vary as the duration of the quantum quench is varied. However, the parity of such number only depends on the pre-quench and post-quench Hamiltonians and is related to a topological invariant.
Abstract Dynamical quantum phase transitions (DQPTs), which serve as a theoretical framework for understanding far-from-equilibrium physics in quantum many-body systems, have recently been observed experimentally. Their topological properties are typically characterized by the winding number, which acts as an order parameter. While DQPTs exhibiting both integer and half-integer jumps in the winding number have been reported, the underlying mechanisms behind these distinct topological behaviors, as well as the potential existence of other topological classes, remain open questions. To address this, we investigate DQPTs in the one-dimensional (1D) XY model under a quench protocol. We show that the observed topological diversity originates from the nature of the critical modes, which we classify into two categories: boundary modes and interior modes. Specifically, critical interior modes always lead to DQPTs with an integer winding number, while critical boundary modes always result in DQPTs characterized by a half-integer winding number. By analyzing the number and classification of critical modes, we provide a classification of the topological properties of DQPTs in the 1D XY model. According to their distinct topological features, we categorize DQPTs into six types, three of which have not been previously identified in the literature. We discuss in detail the conditions associated with each type and present the corresponding dynamical phase diagrams. Our framework is not restricted to the XY model; it is applicable to other two-band models in 1D systems, including the SSH model, Kitaev chain, Rice–Mele model, and Creutz model.
Non-equilibrium aspects of the BCS model have fascinated physicists for decades, from the seminal works of Eliashberg to modern realizations in cold atom experiments. The latter scenarios have lead to a great deal of interest in the quench dynamics of fermions with pairing interactions. The recently introduced notion of a dynamical quantum phase transition is an attempt to classify the myriad of possible phenomena which can result in such far from equilibrium systems. These are defined as non-analytic points of the logarithm of the Loschmidt echo and are linked to oscillations in the dynamics a systems order parameter. In this work we analytically investigate the relation between DQPTs and oscillation of the superconducting order parameter in quenches of the BCS model. We find that each oscillation of the order parameter is accompanied by a DQPT which is first order in nature. We show this for a variety of initial states and furthermore find that when the order parameter attains a constant steady state then no DQPTS occur.
Previous investigations of dynamical quantum phase transition (DQPT) have predominantly focused on sudden quench protocols. In this work, we systematically explore the fate of DQPT from the sudden to the slow quench regime. We establish that DQPT remains robust under slow quenching when the protocol crosses an equilibrium quantum phase transition. Conversely, we show that accidental DQPTs,which occur when the pre and post quench Hamiltonians reside in the same equilibrium phase, can be filtered out in the slow quench limit. This demonstrates that slow quenches can reveal the intrinsic connection between DQPT and equilibrium quantum phase transitions, thereby enabling DQPT to serve as a dynamical probe for identifying equilibrium quantum critical points. We illustrate these findings with examples from the XY chain, the Aubry-André model, and the trimer Su-Schrieffer-Heeger model.
Dynamical quantum phase transitions (DQPTs) represent a counterpart in nonequilibrium quantum time evolution of thermal phase transitions at equilibrium, where real time becomes analogous to a control parameter such as temperature. In quenched quantum systems, recently the occurrence of DQPTs has been demonstrated, both with theory and experiment, to be intimately connected to changes of topological properties. Here, we contribute to broadening the systematic understanding of this relation between topology and DQPTs to multiorbital and disordered systems. Specifically, we provide a detailed ergodicity analysis to derive criteria for DQPTs in all spatial dimensions and construct basic counterexamples to the occurrence of DQPTs in multiband topological insulator models. As a numerical case study illustrating our results, we report on microscopic simulations of the quench dynamics in the Harper-Hofstadter model. Furthermore, going gradually from multiband to disordered systems, we approach random disorder by increasing the (super)unit cell within which random perturbations are switched on adiabatically. This leads to an intriguing order of limits problem which we address by extensive numerical calculations on quenched one-dimensional topological insulators and superconductors with disorder.
Dynamical quantum phase transitions (DQPTs), which refer to the criticality in time of a quantum many-body system, have attracted much theoretical and experimental research interest recently. Despite that DQPTs are defined and signaled by the nonanalyticities in the Loschmidt rate, its interrelation with various correlation measures such as the equilibrium order parameters of the system remains unclear. In this work, by considering the quench dynamics in an interacting topological model, we find that the equilibrium order parameters of the model in general exhibit signatures around the DQPT, in the short time regime. The first extrema of the equilibrium order parameters are connected to the first Loschmidt rate peak. By studying the unequal-time two-point correlation, we also find that the correlation between the nearest neighbors decays while that with neighbors further away builds up as time grows in the noninteracting case, and upon the addition of repulsive intracell interactions. On the other hand, the intercell interaction tends to suppress the two-site correlations. These findings could provide us insights into the characteristic of the system around DQPTs, and pave the way to a better understanding of the dynamics in nonequilibrium quantum many-body systems.
Abstract The dynamical quantum phase transitions (DQPTs) after a sudden quench in periodic quantum Ising chains (QICs) are studied. We obtain the formulas of the Loschmidt echo and the Fisher zeros of the Loschmidt amplitude in the periodic QIC. It is found that for the quench across the quantum phase transitions (QPTs), the periodic QICs have richer DQPTs than that in the homogeneous QIC, and the number of critical times of the DQPTs are dependent on the specifical parameter of the pre- and post-quench Hamiltonian. For instance, in the period-two QIC, there is one critical time for the quench from the FM phase to the PM phase, and three critical times for the quench from the PM phase to the FM phase. In the period-three QIC, there may have three or four critical times for the quench from FM phase to the PM phase, but may have two or three critical times for the quench from PM to the FM phase. The reason is that the periodic QICs have multiple quasiparticle excitation spectra, and the Fisher zeros of the periodic systems consist of several separated branches, which is different from that in the homogeneous QIC. For different quenches across the QPTs, different branches will intersect with the imaginary axis, which correspond to different critical times. Our conclusion also provides insight in the property of the DQPT in the inhomogeneous systems.