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arXiv:cond-mat/0209643 · Journal of Physics A Mathematical and General

Flow equations for Hamiltonians: contrasting different approaches by using a numerically solvable model

Tobias Stauber, A Mielke

Published Mar 6, 2003• 10 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

To contrast different generators for flow equations for Hamiltonians and to discuss the dependence of physical quantities on unitarily equivalent, but effectively different, initial Hamiltonians, a numerically solvable model is considered which is structurally similar to impurity models. By this we discuss the question of optimization for the first time. A general truncation scheme is established that produces good results for the Hamiltonian flow as well as for the operator flow. Nevertheless, it is also pointed out that a systematic and feasible scheme for the operator flow on the operator level is missing. For this, an explicit analysis of the operator flow is given for the first time. We observe that truncation of the series of the observable flow after the linear or bilinear terms does not yield satisfactory results for the entire parameter regime as—especially close to resonances—even high orders of the exact series expansion carry considerable weight.

DOI
10.1088/0305-4470/36/11/305

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To contrast different generators for flow equations for Hamiltonians and to discuss the dependence of physical quantities on unitarily equivalent, but effectively different, initial Hamiltonians, a numerically solvable model is considered which is structurally similar to impurity models. By this we discuss the question of optimization for the first time. A general truncation scheme is established that produces good results for the Hamiltonian flow as well as for the operator flow. Nevertheless, it is also pointed out that a systematic and feasible scheme for the operator flow on the operator level is missing. For this, an explicit analysis of the operator flow is given for the first time. We observe that truncation of the series of the observable flow after the linear or bilinear terms does not yield satisfactory results for the entire parameter regime as—especially close to resonances—even high orders of the exact series expansion carry considerable weight.
We derive Hamiltonian flow equations giving the evolution of the Lipkin Hamiltonian to a diagonal form using continuous unitary transformations. To close the system of flow equations, we present two different schemes. First we linearize an operator with three pairs of creation and destruction operators by reducing it to the zzz component of the quasi spin. We obtain the well known RPA-result in the limit of large particle number. In the second scheme we introduce a new operator which improves the resulting spectrum considerably especially for few particles.
Based on two dissipative models, universal asymptotic behavior of flow equations for Hamiltonians is found and discussed. Universal asymptotic behavior only depends on fundamental bath properties but not on initial system parameters, and the integro-differential equations possess a universal attractor. The asymptotic flow of the Hamiltonian can be characterized by a nonlocal differential equation which only depends on one parameter---independent of the dissipative system or truncation scheme. Since the fixed-point Hamiltonian is trivial, the physical information is completely transferred to the transformation of the observables. This yields a more stable flow which is crucial for the numerical evaluation of correlation functions. Furthermore, the low-energy behavior of correlation functions is determined analytically. The presented procedure can also be applied if relevant perturbations are present as is demonstrated by evaluating dynamical correlation functions for sub-Ohmic environments. It can further be generalized to other dissipative systems.
The matrix U' contains the full dynamics of a bilinear oscillator, because any observable of the system is an analytical function of the operators that determine the matrix representation. One cannot solve the time evolution equation in the general case, but there are many exactly solvable problems that simulate and enable one to understand the dynamics of more elaborate and realistic quantum-mechanical models. In the case of the solvable model just discussed it is easy to derive analytical expressions for operators in the Heisenberg picture as well as for invariants or constants of the motion. The mathematical treatment of the driven oscillator just discussed is trivial because the Hamiltonian operator belongs to a solvable Lie algebra. This model is a convenient starting point to illustrate the use of the Lie algebraic method, but it is also an oversimplification of most oscillatory phenomena. Nonlinear Hamiltonians are useful in many physical applications such as the simulation of frictional forces and dissipation effects.
This thesis presents an overview of the flow equations recently introduced by Wegner. The little known mathematical framework of the flow in the manifold of unitarily equivalent matrices, as discovered in the mathematical literature before Wegner's paper, is established in the initial chapter and used as a background for the entire presentation. The application of flow equations to the Foldy-Wouthuysen transformation and to the elimination of the electron-phonon coupling in a solid is reviewed. Recent flow equations approaches to the Lipkin model are examined thoroughly, paying special attention to their utility near the phase change boundary. We present more robust schemes by requiring that expectation values be flow dependent; either through a variational or self-consistent calculation. The similarity renormalization group equations recently developed by Glazek and Wilson are also reviewed. Their relationship to Wegner's flow equations is investigated through the aid of an instructive model.
We derive flow equations for cold atomic gases with one macroscopically populated energy level. The generator is chosen such that the ground state decouples from all other states in the system as the renormalization group flow progresses. We propose a self-consistent truncation scheme for the flow equations at the level of three-body operators and show how they can be used to calculate the ground state energy of a general N -body system. Moreover, we provide a general method to estimate the truncation error in the calculated energies. Finally, we test our scheme by benchmarking to the exactly solvable Lieb–Liniger model and find good agreement for weak and moderate interaction strengths.
We investigate the effect of assisted hopping in the Anderson impurity model. We use the flow equation method, which, by means of unitary transformations, generates a sequence of Hamiltonians in order to eliminate the assisted hopping terms. This approach yields a renormalized on-site energy ${\ensuremath{\epsilon}}_{d}^{*},$ a renormalized correlation energy U∗,{U}^{*},U∗, and other terms, which include pair hopping. For some parameter values, the initial Hamiltonian flows towards an attractive Anderson model. We argue that this result implies a tendency towards local pairing fluctuations.