Publications

Order by: publication date number of citations

• Parallel assembly of neutral atom arrays with an SLM using linear phase interpolation

  Ivo H. A. Knottnerus, Yu Chih Tseng (曾于誌), Alexander Urech, Robert J. C. Spreeuw, Florian Schreck

  SciPost Phys. 19, 118 (2025) · published 31 October 2025 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We present fast parallel rearrangement of single atoms in optical tweezers into arbitrary geometries by updating holograms displayed by an ultra fast spatial light modulator. Using linear interpolation of the tweezer position and the optical phase between the start and end arrays, we can calculate and display holograms every few ms, limited by technology. To show the versatility of our method, we sort the same atomic sample into multiple geometries with success probabilities of $0.996(2)$ per rearrangement cycle. This makes the method a useful tool for rearranging large atom arrays for quantum computation and quantum simulation.

• Interaction quenches in Bose gases studied with a time-dependent hypernetted-chain Euler-Lagrange method

  Mathias Gartner, David Miesbauer, Michael Kobler, Julia Freund, Giuseppe Carleo, Robert E. Zillich

  SciPost Phys. 18, 123 (2025) · published 9 April 2025 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We present a new variational method to study the dynamics of a closed bosonic many-body system, the time-dependent hypernetted-chain Euler-Lagrange method, tHNC. Based on the Jastrow ansatz, it accounts for quantum fluctuations in a non-perturbative way. The tHNC method scales well with the number of dimensions, as demonstrated by our results on one-, two-, and three-dimensional systems. We apply the tHNC method to interaction quenches, i.e. sudden changes of the interaction strength, in homogeneous Bose gases. When the quench is strong enough that the final state has roton excitations (as found and predicted for dipolar and Rydberg-dressed Bose-Einstein condensates, respectively), the pair distribution function exhibits stable oscillations. For validation, we compare tHNC results with time-dependent variational Monte Carlo results in one and two dimensions.

• Entangled universes

  Divij Gupta, Matthew Headrick, Martin Sasieta

  SciPost Phys. 19, 143 (2025) · published 1 December 2025 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We propose a generalization of the RT and HRT holographic entanglement entropy formulas to spacetimes with asymptotically Minkowski as well as asymptotically AdS regions. We postulate that such spacetimes represent entangled states in a tensor product of Hilbert spaces, each corresponding to one asymptotic region. We show that our conjectured formula has the same general properties and passes the same general tests as the standard HRT formula. We provide further evidence for it by showing that in many cases the Minkowski asymptotic regions can be replaced by AdS ones using a domain wall. We illustrate the use of our formula by calculating entanglement entropies between asymptotic regions in Brill-Lindquist spacetimes, finding phase transitions similar to those known to occur in AdS. We construct networks of universes by gluing together Brill-Lindquist spaces along minimal surfaces. Finally, we discuss a variety of possible extensions and generalizations, including to universes with asymptotically de Sitter regions; in the latter case, we identify an ambiguity in the homology condition, leading to two different versions of the HRT formula which we call "orthodox" and "heterodox", with different physical interpretations.

• Sustaining a temperature difference

  Matteo Polettini, Alberto Garilli

  SciPost Phys. 9, 030 (2020) · published 2 September 2020 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We derive an expression for the minimal rate of entropy that sustains two reservoirs at different temperatures $T_0$ and $T_\ell$. The law displays an intuitive $\ell^{-1}$ dependency on the relative distance and a characterisic $\log^2 (T_\ell/T_0)$ dependency on the boundary temperatures. First we give a back-of-envelope argument based on the Fourier Law (FL) of conduction, showing that the least-dissipation profile is exponential. Then we revisit a model of a chain of oscillators, each coupled to a heat reservoir. In the limit of large damping we reobtain the exponential and squared-log behaviors, providing a self-consistent derivation of the FL. For small damping "equipartition frustration" leads to a well-known balistic behaviour, whose incompatibility with the FL posed a long-time challenge.

• Rényi complexity in mean-field disordered systems

  Nina Javerzat, Eric Bertin, Misaki Ozawa

  SciPost Phys. 18, 124 (2025) · published 10 April 2025 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  Configurational entropy, or complexity, plays a critical role in characterizing disordered systems such as glasses, yet its measurement often requires significant computational resources. Recently, Rényi entropy, a one-parameter generalization of Shannon entropy, has gained attention across various fields of physics due to its simpler functional form, making it more practical for measurements. In this paper, we compute the Rényi version of complexity for prototypical mean-field disordered models, including the random energy model, its generalization, referred to as the random free energy model, and the $p$-spin spherical model. We first demonstrate that the Rényi complexity with index $m$ is related to the free energy difference for a generalized annealed Franz-Parisi potential with $m$ clones. Detailed calculations show that for models having one-step replica symmetry breaking (RSB), the Rényi complexity vanishes at the Kauzmann transition temperature $T_K$, irrespective of $m>1$, while RSB solutions are required even in the liquid phase. This study strengthens the link between Rényi entropy and the physics of disordered systems and provides theoretical insights for its practical measurements.

• Topological dynamics of adiabatic cat states

  Jacquelin Luneau, Benoît Douçot, David Carpentier

  SciPost Phys. 17, 112 (2024) · published 14 October 2024 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We consider a quantum topological frequency converter, realized by coupling a qubit to two slow harmonic modes. The dynamics of such a system is the quantum analog of topological pumping. Our quantum mechanical description shows that an initial state generically evolves into a superposition of two adiabatic states. The topological nature of the coupling between the qubit and the modes splits these two components apart in energy: for each component, an energy transfer at a quantized rate occurs between the two quantum modes, in opposite directions for the two components, reminiscent of the topological pumping. We denote such a superposition of two quantum adiabatic states distinguishable through measures of the modes' energy an adiabatic cat state. We show that the topological coupling enhances the entanglement between the qubit and the modes, and we unveil the role of the quantum or Fubini-Study metric in the characterization of this entanglement.

• Topological states in double monolayer graphene

  Ying-Hai Wu

  SciPost Phys. 13, 094 (2022) · published 12 October 2022 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  Motivated by the experiments on double monolayer graphene that observe a variety of fractional quantum Hall states [Liu et al., Nat. Phys. 15, 893 (2019); Li et al., Nat. Phys. 15, 898 (2019)], we study the special setting in which two monolayers have different areas. It has not been considered before and allows us to construct a class of exotic topological states. The elementary excitations of these states do not carry fractional charges but obey fractional statistics. This is in sharp contrast to all previously studied cases, where the two properties are intimately connected and serve as hallmarks of fractional quantum Hall states. Numerical calculations are performed to demonstrate that some states can be realized with realistic parameters.

• Adiabatic and irreversible classical discrete time crystals

  Adrian Ernst, Anna M. E. B. Rossi, Thomas M. Fischer

  SciPost Phys. 13, 091 (2022) · published 11 October 2022 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We simulate the dynamics of paramagnetic colloidal particles that are placed above a magnetic hexagonal pattern and exposed to an external field periodically changing its direction along a control loop. The conformation of three colloidal particles above one unit cell adiabatically responds with half the frequency of the external field creating a time crystal at arbitrary low frequency. The adiabatic time crystal occurs because of the non-trivial topology of the stationary manifold. When coupling colloidal particles in different unit cells, many body effects cause the formation of topologically isolated time crystals and dynamical phase transitions between different adiabatic reversible and non-adiabatic irreversible space-time-crystallographic arrangements.

• Remote detectability from entanglement bootstrap I: Kirby’s torus trick

  Bowen Shi, Jin-Long Huang, John McGreevy

  SciPost Phys. 18, 126 (2025) · published 14 April 2025 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  Remote detectability is often taken as a physical assumption in the study of topologically ordered systems, and it is a central axiom of mathematical frameworks of topological quantum field theories. We show under the entanglement bootstrap approach that remote detectability is a necessary property; that is, we derive it as a theorem. Starting from a single wave function on a topologically-trivial region satisfying the entanglement bootstrap axioms, we can construct states on closed manifolds. The crucial technique is to immerse the punctured manifold into the topologically trivial region and then heal the puncture. This is analogous to Kirby's torus trick. We then analyze a special class of such manifolds, which we call pairing manifolds. For each pairing manifold, which pairs two classes of excitations, we identify an analog of the topological $S$-matrix. This pairing matrix is unitary, which implies remote detectability between two classes of excitations. These matrices are in general not associated with the mapping class group of the manifold. As a by-product, we can count excitation types (e.g., graph excitations in 3+1d). The pairing phenomenon occurs in many physical contexts, including systems in different dimensions, with or without gapped boundaries. We provide a variety of examples to illustrate its scope.

• Rényi entropies for one-dimensional quantum systems with mixed boundary conditions

  Benoit Estienne, Yacine Ikhlef, Andrei Rotaru

  SciPost Phys. 19, 119 (2025) · published 6 November 2025 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We present a general method for calculating Rényi entropies in the ground state of a one-dimensional critical system with mixed open boundaries, for an interval starting at one of its ends. Technically, we consider the case when the boundary operator implementing the change of boundary conditions is degenerate under the Virasoro algebra. By exploiting the null-vectors conditions, we derive the ordinary differential equations that govern the scaling functions associated to the entropies. In particular, we provide an explicit formula for the second Rényi entropy. Additionally, we identify and compute the leading finite-size corrections to compare our theoretical results with numerical data for the Ising and three-state Potts critical chains.