Publications

Order by: publication date number of citations

• Attenuating dynamics of strongly interacting fermionic superfluids in SYK solvable models

  Tian-Gang Zhou, Pengfei Zhang

  SciPost Phys. 15, 108 (2023) · published 21 September 2023 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  Quench dynamics of fermionic superfluids are an active topic both experimentally and theoretically. Using the BCS theory, such non-equilibrium problems can be reduced to nearly independent spin dynamics, only with a time-dependent mean-field pairing term. This results in persisting oscillations of the pairing strength in certain parameter regimes. However, experiments have observed that the oscillations decay rapidly when the interaction becomes strong, such as in the unitary Fermi gas [Phys. Rev. Res. 3, 023205 (2021)]. Theoretical analysis on this matter is still absent. In this work, we construct an SYK-like model to analyze the effect of strong interactions in a one-dimensional BCS system. We employ the large-$N$ approximation and a Green's function-based technique to solve the equilibrium problem and quench dynamics. Our findings reveal that a strong SYK interaction suppresses the pairing order. Additionally, we verify that the system quickly thermalizes with SYK interactions, whether it involves intrinsic pairing order or proximity effect, resulting in a rapid decay of the oscillation strength. The decay rates exhibit different scaling laws against SYK interaction, which can be understood in terms of the Boltzmann equation. This work represents a first step towards understanding the attenuating dynamics of strongly interacting fermionic superfluids.

  2 citations

• Probing valley phenomena with gate-defined valley splitters

  Juan Daniel Torres Luna, Kostas Vilkelis, Antonio L. R. Manesco

  SciPost Phys. 18, 062 (2025) · published 21 February 2025 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  Despite many reports of valley-related phenomena in graphene and its multilayers, current transport experiments cannot probe valley phenomena without the application of external fields. Here we propose a gate-defined valley splitter as a direct transport probe for valley phenomenon in graphene multilayers. First, we show how the device works, its magnetotransport response, and its robustness against fabrication errors. Secondly, we present two applications for valley splitters: (i) resonant tunneling of quantum dots probed by a valley splitter shows the valley polarization of dot levels; (ii) a combination of two valley splitters resolves the nature of order parameters in mesoscopic samples.

  2 citations

• Nonlocality of deep thermalization

  Harshank Shrotriya, Wen Wei Ho

  SciPost Phys. 18, 107 (2025) · published 21 March 2025 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We study the role of global system topology in governing deep thermalization, the relaxation of a local subsystem towards a maximally-entropic, uniform distribution of post-measurement states, upon observing the complementary subsystem in a local basis. Concretely, we focus on a class of (1+1)d systems exhibiting 'maximally-chaotic' dynamics, and consider how the rate of the formation of such a universal wavefunction distribution depends on boundary conditions of the system. We find that deep thermalization is achieved exponentially quickly in the presence of either periodic or open boundary conditions; however, the rate at which this occurs is twice as fast for the former than for the latter. These results are attained analytically using the calculus of integration over unitary groups, and supported by extensive numerical simulations. Our findings highlight the nonlocal nature of deep thermalization, and clearly illustrates that the physics underlying this phenomenon goes beyond that of standard quantum thermalization, which only depends on the net build-up of entanglement between a subsystem and its complement.

  2 citations

• Traveling discontinuity at the quantum butterfly front

  Camille Aron, Éric Brunet, Aditi Mitra

  SciPost Phys. 15, 042 (2023) · published 2 August 2023 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We formulate a kinetic theory of quantum information scrambling in the context of a paradigmatic model of interacting electrons in the vicinity of a superconducting phase transition. We carefully derive a set of coupled partial differential equations that effectively govern the dynamics of information spreading in generic dimensions. Their solutions show that scrambling propagates at the maximal speed set by the Fermi velocity. At early times, we find exponential growth at a rate set by the inelastic scattering. At late times, we find that scrambling is governed by shock-wave dynamics with traveling waves exhibiting a discontinuity at the boundary of the light cone. Notably, we find perfectly causal dynamics where the solutions do not spill outside of the light cone.

  2 citations

• Self-binding of one-dimensional fermionic mixtures with zero-range interspecies attraction

  Jules Givois, Andrea Tononi, and Dmitry S. Petrov

  SciPost Phys. 14, 091 (2023) · published 3 May 2023 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  For sufficiently large mass ratios the attractive exchange force caused by a single light atom interacting with a few heavy identical fermions can overcome their Fermi degeneracy pressure and bind them into an $N+1$ cluster. Here, by using a mean-field approach valid for large $N$, we find that $N+1$ clusters can attract each other and form a self-bound charge density wave, the properties of which we fully characterize. Our work shows that there are no fundamental obstacles for having self-bound states in fermionic mixtures with zero-range interactions.

  2 citations

• Solution of master equations by fermionic-duality: Time-dependent charge and heat currents through an interacting quantum dot proximized by a superconductor

  Lara C. Ortmanns, Maarten R. Wegewijs, Janine Splettstoesser

  SciPost Phys. 14, 095 (2023) · published 4 May 2023 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We analyze the time-dependent solution of master equations by exploiting fermionic duality, a dissipative symmetry applicable to a large class of open systems describing quantum transport. Whereas previous studies mostly exploited duality relations after partially solving the evolution equations, we here systematically exploit the invariance under the fermionic duality mapping from the very beginning when setting up these equations. Moreover, we extend the resulting simplifications -so far applied to the local state evolution- to non-local observables such as transport currents. We showcase the exploitation of fermionic duality for a quantum dot with strong interaction -covering both the repulsive and attractive case- proximized by contact with a large-gap superconductor which is weakly probed by charge and heat currents into a wide-band normal-metal electrode. We derive the complete time-dependent analytical solution of this problem involving non-equilibrium Cooper pair transport, Andreev bound states and strong interaction. Additionally exploiting detailed balance we show that even for this relatively complex problem the evolution towards the stationary state can be understood analytically in terms of the stationary state of the system itself via its relation to the stationary state of a dual system with inverted Coulomb interaction, superconducting pairing and applied voltages.

  2 citations

• Charting the space of ground states with tensor networks

  Marvin Qi, David T. Stephen, Xueda Wen, Daniel Spiegel, Markus J. Pflaum, Agnès Beaudry, Michael Hermele

  SciPost Phys. 18, 168 (2025) · published 28 May 2025 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We employ matrix product states (MPS) and tensor networks to study topological properties of the space of ground states of gapped many-body systems. We focus on families of states in one spatial dimension, where each state can be represented as an injective MPS of finite bond dimension. Such states are short-range entangled ground states of gapped local Hamiltonians. To such parametrized families over $X$ we associate a gerbe, which generalizes the line bundle of ground states in zero-dimensional families (\textit{i.e.} in few-body quantum mechanics). The nontriviality of the gerbe is measured by a class in $H^3(X, \Z)$, which is believed to classify one-dimensional parametrized systems. We show that when the gerbe is nontrivial, there is an obstruction to representing the family of ground states with an MPS tensor that is continuous everywhere on $X$. We illustrate our construction with two examples of nontrivial parametrized systems over $X=S^3$ and $X = \R P^2 × S^1$. Finally, we sketch using tensor network methods how the construction extends to higher dimensional parametrized systems, with an example of a two-dimensional parametrized system that gives rise to a nontrivial 2-gerbe over $X = S^4$.

  2 citations

• Higher-form symmetry and chiral transport in real-time Abelian lattice gauge theory

  Arpit Das, Adrien Florio, Nabil Iqbal, Napat Poovuttikul

  SciPost Phys. 17, 085 (2024) · published 19 September 2024 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We study classical lattice simulations of theories of electrodynamics coupled to charged matter at finite temperature, interpreting them using the higher-form symmetry formulation of magnetohydrodynamics (MHD). We compute transport coefficients using classical Kubo formulas on the lattice and show that the properties of the simulated plasma are in complete agreement with the predictions from effective field theories. In particular, the higher-form formulation allows us to understand from hydrodynamic considerations the relaxation rate of axial charge in the chiral plasma observed in previous simulations. A key point is that the resistivity of the plasma – defined in terms of Kubo formulas for the electric field in the 1-form formulation of MHD – remains a well-defined and predictive quantity at strong electromagnetic coupling. However, the Kubo formulas used to define the conventional conductivity vanish at low frequencies due to electrodynamic fluctuations, and thus the concept of the conductivity of a gauged electric current must be interpreted with care.

  2 citations

• First-order transition in a model of prestige bias

  Brian Skinner

  SciPost Phys. 8, 030 (2020) · published 19 February 2020 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  One of the major benefits of belonging to a prestigious group is that it affects the way you are viewed by others. Here I use a simple mathematical model to explore the implications of this "prestige bias" when candidates undergo repeated rounds of evaluation. In the model, candidates who are evaluated most highly are admitted to a "prestige class", and their membership biases future rounds of evaluation in their favor. I use the language of Bayesian inference to describe this bias, and show that it can lead to a runaway effect in which the weight given to the prior expectation associated with a candidate's class becomes stronger with each round. Most dramatically, the strength of the prestige bias after many rounds undergoes a first-order transition as a function of the precision of the examination on which the evaluation is based.

  2 citations

• Charge order and antiferromagnetism in twisted bilayer graphene from the variational cluster approximation

  B. Pahlevanzadeh, P. Sahebsara, D. Sénéchal

  SciPost Phys. 13, 040 (2022) · published 30 August 2022 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We study the possibility of charge order at quarter filling and antiferromagnetism at half-filling in a tight-binding model of magic angle twisted bilayer graphene. We build on the model proposed by Kang and Vafek, relevant to a twist angle of $1.30^\circ$, and add on-site and extended density-density interactions. Applying the variational cluster approximation with an exact-diagonalization impurity solver, we find that the system is indeed a correlated (Mott) insulator at fillings $\frac14$, $\frac12$ and $\frac34$. At quarter filling, we check that the most probable charge orders do not arise, for all values of the interaction tested. At half-filling, antiferromagnetism only arises if the local repulsion $U$ is sufficiently large compared to the extended interactions, beyond what is expected from the simplest model of extended interactions.

  2 citations