The exploration of atomic fractional quantum Hall (FQH) states is now within reach in optical-lattice experiments. While ground-state signatures have been observed in a system realizing the Hofstadter-Bose-Hubbard model in a box [Leonard et al., Nature 2023], how to access hallmark low-energy collective modes remains a central open question in this context. We introduce a spectroscopic scheme based on two interfering Laguerre-Gaussian beams, which transfer a controlled angular momentum and energy to the system. The edge and bulk responses to the probe are detected through local density measurements, by tracking the transfer of atoms between the bulk and the edge of the FQH droplet. This detection scheme is shown to simultaneously reveal two specific signatures of FQH states: their chiral edge branch and their bulk magneto-roton mode. We numerically benchmark our method by considering few bosons in the $ν=1/2$ Laughlin ground state of the Hofstadter-Bose-Hubbard model, and demonstrate that these signatures are already detectable in realistic systems of two bosons, provided that the box potential is larger than the droplet. Our work paves the way for the detection of fractional statistics in cold atoms through edge signatures.The exploration of atomic fractional quantum Hall (FQH) states is now within reach in optical-lattice experiments. While ground-state signatures have been observed in a system realizing the Hofstadter-Bose-Hubbard model in a box [Leonard et al., Nature 2023], how to access hallmark low-energy collective modes remains a central open question in this context. We introduce a spectroscopic scheme based on two interfering Laguerre-Gaussian beams, which transfer a controlled angular momentum and energy to the system. The edge and bulk responses to the probe are detected through local density measurements, by tracking the transfer of atoms between the bulk and the edge of the FQH droplet. This detection scheme is shown to simultaneously reveal two specific signatures of FQH states: their chiral edge branch and their bulk magneto-roton mode. We numerically benchmark our method by considering few bosons in the $ν=1/2$ Laughlin ground state of the Hofstadter-Bose-Hubbard model, and demonstrate that these signatures are already detectable in realistic systems of two bosons, provided that the box potential is larger than the droplet. Our work paves the way for the detection of fractional statistics in cold atoms through edge signatures.

arXiv:2306.01624Jun 2, 20231 citation

Fractional Chern insulators of few bosons in a box: Hall plateaus from center-of-mass drifts and density profiles

Cécile Repellin, Julian Léonard, Nathan Goldman

Realizing strongly correlated topological phases of ultracold gases is a central goal for ongoing experiments. While fractional quantum Hall states could soon be implemented in small atomic ensembles, detecting their signatures in few-particle settings remains a fundamental challenge. In this work, we numerically analyze the center-of-mass Hall drift of a small ensemble of hardcore bosons, initially prepared in the ground state of the Harper-Hofstadter-Hubbard model in a box potential. By monitoring the Hall drift upon release, for a wide range of magnetic flux values, we identify an emergent Hall plateau compatible with a fractional Chern insulator state: The extracted Hall conductivity approaches a fractional value determined by the many-body Chern number, while the width of the plateau agrees with the spectral and topological properties of the prepared ground state. Besides, a direct application of Streda's formula indicates that such Hall plateaus can also be directly obtained from static density-profile measurements. Our calculations suggest that fractional Chern insulators can be detected in cold-atom experiments, using available detection methods.Realizing strongly correlated topological phases of ultracold gases is a central goal for ongoing experiments. While fractional quantum Hall states could soon be implemented in small atomic ensembles, detecting their signatures in few-particle settings remains a fundamental challenge. In this work, we numerically analyze the center-of-mass Hall drift of a small ensemble of hardcore bosons, initially prepared in the ground state of the Harper-Hofstadter-Hubbard model in a box potential. By monitoring the Hall drift upon release, for a wide range of magnetic flux values, we identify an emergent Hall plateau compatible with a fractional Chern insulator state: The extracted Hall conductivity approaches a fractional value determined by the many-body Chern number, while the width of the plateau agrees with the spectral and topological properties of the prepared ground state. Besides, a direct application of Streda's formula indicates that such Hall plateaus can also be directly obtained from static density-profile measurements. Our calculations suggest that fractional Chern insulators can be detected in cold-atom experiments, using available detection methods.

arXiv:2005.09689Physical Review ADec 14, 202049 citations

Hall drift of fractional Chern insulators in few-boson systems

Cécile Repellin, Julian Léonard, Nathan Goldman

Realizing strongly-correlated topological phases of ultracold gases is a central goal for ongoing experiments. And while fractional quantum Hall states could soon be implemented in small atomic ensembles, detecting their signatures in few-particle settings remains a fundamental challenge. In this work, we numerically analyze the center-of-mass Hall drift of a small ensemble of hardcore bosons, initially prepared in the ground state of the Harper-Hofstadter-Hubbard model. By extracting the Hall conductivity in a wide range of the magnetic flux, we identify an emergent Hall plateau compatible with a fractional Chern insulator state: the width of the plateau agrees with the spectral and topological properties of the prepared ground state, while the Hall conductivity approaches a fractional value determined by the many-body Chern number. A comparison with a direct application of Streda's formula is also discussed. Our calculations suggest that fractional Chern insulators can be detected in cold-atom experiments, using available detection methods.Realizing strongly-correlated topological phases of ultracold gases is a central goal for ongoing experiments. And while fractional quantum Hall states could soon be implemented in small atomic ensembles, detecting their signatures in few-particle settings remains a fundamental challenge. In this work, we numerically analyze the center-of-mass Hall drift of a small ensemble of hardcore bosons, initially prepared in the ground state of the Harper-Hofstadter-Hubbard model. By extracting the Hall conductivity in a wide range of the magnetic flux, we identify an emergent Hall plateau compatible with a fractional Chern insulator state: the width of the plateau agrees with the spectral and topological properties of the prepared ground state, while the Hall conductivity approaches a fractional value determined by the many-body Chern number. A comparison with a direct application of Streda's formula is also discussed. Our calculations suggest that fractional Chern insulators can be detected in cold-atom experiments, using available detection methods.

Bulletin of the American Physical SocietyMay 19, 20202 citations

Measurable signatures of bosonic fractional Chern insulator states and their fractional excitations in a quantum-gas microscope

Botao Wang, Xiaoyu Dong, André Eckardt

The recent progress in engineering topological band structures in optical-lattice systems makes it promising to study fractional Chern insulator states in these systems. Here we consider a realistic finite system of a few repulsively interacting bosons on a square lattice with magnetic flux and sharp edges, as it can be realized in quantum-gas microscopes. We investigate under which conditions a fractional Chern insulator state corresponding to the Laughlin-like state at filling \nu=1/2 ν = 1 / 2 can be stabilized and its fractional excitations probed. Using numerical simulations, we find an incompressible bulk density at the expected filling for systems, whose linear extent is as small as 6-8 sites. This is a promising result, since such small systems are favorable with respect to the required adiabatic state preparation. Moreover, we also see very clear signatures of excitations with fractional charge in response both to static pinning potentials and dynamical flux insertion. Since the compressible edges, which are found to feature chiral currents, can serve as a reservoir, these observations are robust against changes in the total particle number. Our results suggest that signatures of both a fractional Chern insulator state and its fractional excitations can be found under realistic experimental conditions.The recent progress in engineering topological band structures in optical-lattice systems makes it promising to study fractional Chern insulator states in these systems. Here we consider a realistic finite system of a few repulsively interacting bosons on a square lattice with magnetic flux and sharp edges, as it can be realized in quantum-gas microscopes. We investigate under which conditions a fractional Chern insulator state corresponding to the Laughlin-like state at filling \nu=1/2 ν = 1 / 2 can be stabilized and its fractional excitations probed. Using numerical simulations, we find an incompressible bulk density at the expected filling for systems, whose linear extent is as small as 6-8 sites. This is a promising result, since such small systems are favorable with respect to the required adiabatic state preparation. Moreover, we also see very clear signatures of excitations with fractional charge in response both to static pinning potentials and dynamical flux insertion. Since the compressible edges, which are found to feature chiral currents, can serve as a reservoir, these observations are robust against changes in the total particle number. Our results suggest that signatures of both a fractional Chern insulator state and its fractional excitations can be found under realistic experimental conditions.

arXiv:2111.01110SciPost PhysicsMar 17, 202223 citations

Chiral Graviton Modes in Fermionic Fractional Chern Insulators

Min Long, Zeno Bacciconi, Hongyu Lu +3 more

Chiral graviton modes are hallmark collective excitations of Fractional Quantum Hall (FQH) liquids. However, their existence on the lattice, where continuum symmetries that protect them from decay are lost, is still an open and urgent question, especially considering the recent advances in the realization of Fractional Chern Insulators (FCI) in transition metal dichalcogenides and rhombohedral pentalayer graphene. Here we present a comprehensive theoretical and numerical study of graviton-modes in fermionic FCI, and thoroughly demonstrate their existence. We first derive a lattice stress tensor operator in the context of the fermionic Harper-Hofstadter(HH) model which captures the graviton in the flat band limit. Importantly, we discover that such lattice stress-tensor operators are deeply connected to lattice quadrupolar density correlators, readily generalizable to generic Chern bands. We then explicitly show the adiabatic connection between FQH and FCI chiral graviton modes by interpolating from a low flux HH model to a Checkerboard lattice model that hosts a topological flat band. In particular, using state-of-the-art matrix product state and exact diagonalization simulations, we provide strong evidence that chiral graviton modes are long-lived excitations in FCIs despite the lack of continuous symmetries and the scattering with a two-magnetoroton continuum. By means of a careful finite-size analysis, we show that the lattice generates a finite but small intrinsic decay rate for the graviton mode. We discuss the relevance of our results for the exploration of graviton modes in FCI phases realized in solid state settings, as well as cold atom experiments.Chiral graviton modes are hallmark collective excitations of Fractional Quantum Hall (FQH) liquids. However, their existence on the lattice, where continuum symmetries that protect them from decay are lost, is still an open and urgent question, especially considering the recent advances in the realization of Fractional Chern Insulators (FCI) in transition metal dichalcogenides and rhombohedral pentalayer graphene. Here we present a comprehensive theoretical and numerical study of graviton-modes in fermionic FCI, and thoroughly demonstrate their existence. We first derive a lattice stress tensor operator in the context of the fermionic Harper-Hofstadter(HH) model which captures the graviton in the flat band limit. Importantly, we discover that such lattice stress-tensor operators are deeply connected to lattice quadrupolar density correlators, readily generalizable to generic Chern bands. We then explicitly show the adiabatic connection between FQH and FCI chiral graviton modes by interpolating from a low flux HH model to a Checkerboard lattice model that hosts a topological flat band. In particular, using state-of-the-art matrix product state and exact diagonalization simulations, we provide strong evidence that chiral graviton modes are long-lived excitations in FCIs despite the lack of continuous symmetries and the scattering with a two-magnetoroton continuum. By means of a careful finite-size analysis, we show that the lattice generates a finite but small intrinsic decay rate for the graviton mode. We discuss the relevance of our results for the exploration of graviton modes in FCI phases realized in solid state settings, as well as cold atom experiments.

cond-mat.str-elCross-listedarXiv:2601.05196Jan 9, 2026

Realization of a fractional quantum Hall state with ultracold atoms

Julian Léonard, Sooshin Kim, Joyce Kwan +5 more

Strongly interacting topological matter exhibits fundamentally new phenomena with potential applications in quantum information technology. Emblematic instances are fractional quantum Hall states, where the interplay of magnetic fields and strong interactions gives rise to fractionally charged quasi-particles, long-ranged entanglement, and anyonic exchange statistics. Progress in engineering synthetic magnetic fields has raised the hope to create these exotic states in controlled quantum systems. However, except for a recent Laughlin state of light, preparing fractional quantum Hall states in engineered systems remains elusive. Here, we realize a fractional quantum Hall (FQH) state with ultracold atoms in an optical lattice. The state is a lattice version of a bosonic $ν=1/2$ Laughlin state with two particles on sixteen sites. This minimal system already captures many hallmark features of Laughlin-type FQH states: we observe a suppression of two-body interactions, we find a distinctive vortex structure in the density correlations, and we measure a fractional Hall conductivity of $σ_\text{H}/σ_0= 0.6(2)$ via the bulk response to a magnetic perturbation. Furthermore, by tuning the magnetic field we map out the transition point between the normal and the FQH regime through a spectroscopic probe of the many-body gap. Our work provides a starting point for exploring highly entangled topological matter with ultracold atoms.Strongly interacting topological matter exhibits fundamentally new phenomena with potential applications in quantum information technology. Emblematic instances are fractional quantum Hall states, where the interplay of magnetic fields and strong interactions gives rise to fractionally charged quasi-particles, long-ranged entanglement, and anyonic exchange statistics. Progress in engineering synthetic magnetic fields has raised the hope to create these exotic states in controlled quantum systems. However, except for a recent Laughlin state of light, preparing fractional quantum Hall states in engineered systems remains elusive. Here, we realize a fractional quantum Hall (FQH) state with ultracold atoms in an optical lattice. The state is a lattice version of a bosonic $ν=1/2$ Laughlin state with two particles on sixteen sites. This minimal system already captures many hallmark features of Laughlin-type FQH states: we observe a suppression of two-body interactions, we find a distinctive vortex structure in the density correlations, and we measure a fractional Hall conductivity of $σ_\text{H}/σ_0= 0.6(2)$ via the bulk response to a magnetic perturbation. Furthermore, by tuning the magnetic field we map out the transition point between the normal and the FQH regime through a spectroscopic probe of the many-body gap. Our work provides a starting point for exploring highly entangled topological matter with ultracold atoms.

arXiv:2210.10919Oct 19, 20225 citations

ν=1/2

Laughlin ground state of the Hofstadter-Bose-Hubbard model, and demonstrate that these signatures are already detectable in realistic systems of two bosons, provided that the box potential is larger than the droplet. Our work paves the way for the detection of fractional statistics in cold atoms through edge signatures.

ν=1/2

Laughlin state with two particles on sixteen sites. This minimal system already captures many hallmark features of Laughlin-type FQH states: we observe a suppression of two-body interactions, we find a distinctive vortex structure in the density correlations, and we measure a fractional Hall conductivity of

σ_\text{H}/σ_0= 0.6(2)

via the bulk response to a magnetic perturbation. Furthermore, by tuning the magnetic field we map out the transition point between the normal and the FQH regime through a spectroscopic probe of the many-body gap. Our work provides a starting point for exploring highly entangled topological matter with ultracold atoms.