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Showing papers by "Eugene Demler published in 2018"


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors discuss the dynamic response of heavy quantum impurities immersed in a Fermi gas at zero and at finite temperature, and predict the thermal decoherence rate of the fermionic system.
Abstract: In this report we discuss the dynamical response of heavy quantum impurities immersed in a Fermi gas at zero and at finite temperature. Studying both the frequency and the time domain allows one to identify interaction regimes that are characterized by distinct many-body dynamics. From this theoretical study a picture emerges in which impurity dynamics is universal on essentially all time scales, and where the high-frequency few-body response is related to the long-time dynamics of the Anderson orthogonality catastrophe by Tan relations. Our theoretical description relies on different and complementary approaches: functional determinants give an exact numerical solution for time- and frequency-resolved responses, bosonization provides accurate analytical expressions at low temperatures, and the theory of Toeplitz determinants allows one to analytically predict response up to high temperatures. Using these approaches we predict the thermal decoherence rate of the fermionic system and prove that within the considered model the fastest rate of long-time decoherence is given by [Formula: see text]. We show that Feshbach resonances in cold atomic systems give access to new interaction regimes where quantum effects can prevail even in the thermal regime of many-body dynamics. The key signature of this phenomenon is a crossover between different exponential decay rates of the real-time Ramsey signal. It is shown that the physics of the orthogonality catastrophe is experimentally observable up to temperatures [Formula: see text] where it leaves its fingerprint in a power-law temperature dependence of thermal spectral weight and we review how this phenomenon is related to the physics of heavy ions in liquid [Formula: see text]He and the formation of Fermi polarons. The presented results are in excellent agreement with recent experiments on LiK mixtures, and we predict several new phenomena that can be tested using currently available experimental technology.

185 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: By controlling the spin states of nitrogen vacancy color centers in diamond, this work reports the observation of critical thermalization in a three dimensional ensemble of ∼10^{6} electronic spins coupled via dipolar interactions and identifies a regime of power-law decay with disorder-dependent exponents.
Abstract: Statistical mechanics underlies our understanding of macroscopic quantum systems. It is based on the assumption that out-of-equilibrium systems rapidly approach their equilibrium states, forgetting any information about their microscopic initial conditions. This fundamental paradigm is challenged by disordered systems, in which a slowdown or even absence of thermalization is expected. We report the observation of critical thermalization in a three dimensional ensemble of ∼10^{6} electronic spins coupled via dipolar interactions. By controlling the spin states of nitrogen vacancy color centers in diamond, we observe slow, subexponential relaxation dynamics and identify a regime of power-law decay with disorder-dependent exponents; this behavior is modified at late times owing to many-body interactions. These observations are quantitatively explained by a resonance counting theory that incorporates the effects of both disorder and interactions.

159 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a functional determinant approach was used to solve an extended Frohlich Hamiltonian for a mobile impurity in a Bose gas, and the results showed a universal behavior in the Rydberg spectral line shape and in scaling of the spectral width with the principal quantum number.
Abstract: We report spectroscopic observation of Rydberg polarons in an atomic Bose gas. Polarons are created by excitation of Rydberg atoms as impurities in a strontium Bose-Einstein condensate. They are distinguished from previously studied polarons by macroscopic occupation of bound molecular states that arise from scattering of the weakly bound Rydberg electron from ground-state atoms. The absence of a $p$-wave resonance in the low-energy electron-atom scattering in Sr introduces a universal behavior in the Rydberg spectral line shape and in scaling of the spectral width (narrowing) with the Rydberg principal quantum number, $n$. Spectral features are described with a functional determinant approach (FDA) that solves an extended Fr\"ohlich Hamiltonian for a mobile impurity in a Bose gas. Excited states of polyatomic Rydberg molecules (trimers, tetrameters, and pentamers) are experimentally resolved and accurately reproduced with a FDA.

144 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The microscopic real-space characterization of magnetic polarons in a doped Fermi–Hubbard system is reported, enabled by the single-site spin and density resolution of the ultracold-atom quantum simulator, showing that mobile delocalized doublons are necessary for polaron formation.
Abstract: Polarons are among the most fundamental quasiparticles emerging in interacting many-body systems, forming already at the level of a single mobile dopant. In the context of the two-dimensional Fermi-Hubbard model, such polarons are predicted to form around charged dopants in an antiferromagnetic background in the low doping regime close to the Mott insulating state. Macroscopic transport and spectroscopy measurements related to high $T_{c}$ materials have yielded strong evidence for the existence of such quasiparticles in these systems. Here we report the first microscopic observation of magnetic polarons in a doped Fermi-Hubbard system, harnessing the full single-site spin and density resolution of our ultracold-atom quantum simulator. We reveal the dressing of mobile doublons by a local reduction and even sign reversal of magnetic correlations, originating from the competition between kinetic and magnetic energy in the system. The experimentally observed polaron signatures are found to be consistent with an effective string model at finite temperature. We demonstrate that delocalization of the doublon is a necessary condition for polaron formation by contrasting this mobile setting to a scenario where the doublon is pinned to a lattice site. Our work paves the way towards probing interactions between polarons, which may lead to stripe formation, as well as microscopically exploring the fate of polarons in the pseudogap and bad metal phase.

117 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a new variational method for investigating the ground state and out-of-equilibrium dynamics of quantum many-body bosonic and fermionic systems is presented, based on constructing variational wave functions which extend Gaussian states by including generalized canonical transformations between the fields.

101 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: An empirical model based on the analogy with the anharmonic oscillator is proposed to describe the effect of various experimental parameters on the nonequilibrium tunnel dynamics of two coupled one-dimensional Bose-Einstein quasicondensates deep in the Josephson regime.
Abstract: We present an experimental study on the nonequilibrium tunnel dynamics of two coupled one-dimensional Bose-Einstein quasicondensates deep in the Josephson regime. Josephson oscillations are initiated by splitting a single one-dimensional condensate and imprinting a relative phase between the superfluids. Regardless of the initial state and experimental parameters, the dynamics of the relative phase and atom number imbalance shows a relaxation to a phase-locked steady state. The latter is characterized by a high phase coherence and reduced fluctuations with respect to the initial state. We propose an empirical model based on the analogy with the anharmonic oscillator to describe the effect of various experimental parameters. A microscopic theory compatible with our observations is still missing.

100 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors search for specific patterns within the individual images of many realizations of strongly correlated ultracold fermions in an optical lattice and demonstrate the potential for pattern recognition to provide key insights into cold-atom quantum many-body systems.
Abstract: Understanding strongly correlated quantum many-body states is one of the most difficult challenges in modern physics. For example, there remain fundamental open questions on the phase diagram of the Hubbard model, which describes strongly correlated electrons in solids. In this work we realize the Hubbard Hamiltonian and search for specific patterns within the individual images of many realizations of strongly correlated ultracold fermions in an optical lattice. Upon doping a cold-atom antiferromagnet we find consistency with geometric strings, entities that may explain the relationship between hole motion and spin order, in both pattern-based and conventional observables. Our results demonstrate the potential for pattern recognition to provide key insights into cold-atom quantum many-body systems.

75 citations


Posted Content
TL;DR: In this article, the authors demonstrate how quantized dynamical gauge fields can be created in mixtures of ultracold atoms in optical lattices by combining coherent lattice modulation techniques with strong Hubbard interactions.
Abstract: Artificial magnetic fields and spin-orbit couplings have been recently generated in ultracold gases in view of realizing topological states of matter and frustrated magnetism in a highly-controllable environment. Despite being dynamically tunable, such artificial gauge fields are genuinely classical and exhibit no back-action from the neutral particles. Here we go beyond this paradigm, and demonstrate how quantized dynamical gauge fields can be created in mixtures of ultracold atoms in optical lattices. Specifically, we propose a protocol by which atoms of one species carry a magnetic flux felt by another species, hence realizing an instance of flux-attachment. This is obtained by combining coherent lattice modulation techniques with strong Hubbard interactions. We demonstrate how this setting can be arranged so as to implement lattice models displaying a local Z2 gauge symmetry, both in one and two dimensions. We also provide a detailed analysis of a ladder toy model, which features a global Z2 symmetry, and reveal the phase transitions that occur both in the matter and gauge sectors. Mastering flux-attachment in optical lattices envisages a new route towards the realization of strongly-correlated systems with properties dictated by an interplay of dynamical matter and gauge fields.

70 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a single hole described by the t-Jz model with Ising interactions between the spins in 2D is shown to behave as bound states of two partons, a spinon and a holon carrying spin and charge quantum numbers respectively.
Abstract: When a mobile hole is moving in an anti-ferromagnet it distorts the surrounding Neel order and forms a magnetic polaron. Such interplay between hole motion and anti-ferromagnetism is believed to be at the heart of high-Tc superconductivity in cuprates. We study a single hole described by the t-Jz model with Ising interactions between the spins in 2D. This situation can be experimentally realized in quantum gas microscopes. When the hole hopping is much larger than couplings between the spins, we find strong evidence that magnetic polarons can be understood as bound states of two partons, a spinon and a holon carrying spin and charge quantum numbers respectively. We introduce a microscopic parton description which is benchmarked by comparison with results from advanced numerical simulations. Using this parton theory, we predict a series of excited states that are invisible in the spectral function and correspond to rotational excitations of the spinon-holon pair. This is reminiscent of mesonic resonances observed in high-energy physics, which can be understood as rotating quark antiquark pairs. We also apply the strong coupling parton theory to study far-from equilibrium dynamics of magnetic polarons observable in current experiments with ultracold atoms. Our work supports earlier ideas that partons in a confining phase of matter represent a useful paradigm in condensed-matter physics and in the context of high-Tc superconductivity. While direct observations of spinons and holons in real space are impossible in traditional solid-state experiments, quantum gas microscopes provide a new experimental toolbox. We show that, using this platform, direct observations of partons in and out-of equilibrium are possible. Extensions of our approach to the t-J model are also discussed. Our predictions in this case are relevant to current experiments with quantum gas microscopes for ultracold atoms.

68 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a measurement scheme to access the momentum and energy-resolved spectral function in a quantum gas microscope is proposed, and the spectrum of a single hole excitation in one-dimensional $t$-$J$ models is calculated and analyzed.
Abstract: Quantum gas microscopes are a promising tool to study interacting quantum many-body systems and bridge the gap between theoretical models and real materials. One of the most powerful experimental methods in solids is angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES), which measures the single-particle spectral function. The authors propose a measurement scheme to experimentally access the momentum- and energy-resolved spectral function in a quantum gas microscope. As an example for possible applications, the spectrum of a single hole excitation in one-dimensional $t$-$J$ models is calculated and analyzed. A sharp asymmetry in the distribution of spectral weight, reminiscent of the Fermi arcs observed in the pseudogap phase of cuprates, appears in the case of an isotropic Heisenberg spin chain.

59 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A method is introduced to investigate the static and dynamic properties of both Abelian and non-Abelian lattice gauge models in $1+1$ dimensions by identifying a set of transformations that disentangle different degrees of freedom, and applying a simple Gaussian variational ansatz to the resulting Hamiltonian.
Abstract: We introduce a method to investigate the static and dynamic properties of both Abelian and non-Abelian lattice gauge models in $1+1$ dimensions. Specifically, we identify a set of transformations that disentangle different degrees of freedom, and apply a simple Gaussian variational ansatz to the resulting Hamiltonian. To demonstrate the suitability of the method, we analyze both static and dynamic aspects of string breaking for the U(1) and SU(2) gauge models. We benchmark our results against tensor network simulations and observe excellent agreement, although the number of variational parameters in the Gaussian ansatz is much smaller.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a scheme to realize the Kondo model with tunable anisotropy using alkaline-earth atoms in an optical lattice is proposed, which can be realized either using state-dependent optical Stark shifts or magnetic fields.
Abstract: We propose a scheme to realize the Kondo model with tunable anisotropy using alkaline-earth atoms in an optical lattice. The new feature of our setup is Floquet engineering of interactions using time-dependent Zeeman shifts, that can be realized either using state-dependent optical Stark shifts or magnetic fields. The properties of the resulting Kondo model strongly depend on the anisotropy of the ferromagnetic interactions. In particular, easy-plane couplings give rise to Kondo singlet formation even though microscopic interactions are all ferromagnetic. We discuss both equilibrium and dynamical properties of the system that can be measured with ultracold atoms, including the impurity spin susceptibility, the impurity spin relaxation rate, as well as the equilibrium and dynamical spin correlations between the impurity and the ferromagnetic bath atoms. We analyze the nonequilibrium time evolution of the system using a variational non-Gaussian approach, which allows us to explore coherent dynamics over both short and long timescales, as set by the bandwidth and the Kondo singlet formation, respectively. In the quench-type experiments, when the Kondo interaction is suddenly switched on, we find that real-time dynamics shows crossovers reminiscent of poor man's renormalization group flow used to describe equilibrium systems. For bare easy-plane ferromagnetic couplings, this allows us to follow the formation of the Kondo screening cloud as the dynamics crosses over from ferromagnetic to antiferromagnetic behavior. On the other side of the phase diagram, our scheme makes it possible to measure quantum corrections to the well-known Korringa law describing the temperature dependence of the impurity spin relaxation rate. Theoretical results discussed in our paper can be measured using currently available experimental techniques.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A versatile and efficient variational approach is developed to solve in- and out-of-equilibrium problems of generic quantum spin-impurity systems, and a new canonical transformation is presented that completely decouples the impurity and bath degrees of freedom.
Abstract: A versatile and efficient variational approach is developed to solve in- and out-of-equilibrium problems of generic quantum spin-impurity systems. Employing the discrete symmetry hidden in spin-impurity models, we present a new canonical transformation that completely decouples the impurity and bath degrees of freedom. Combining it with Gaussian states, we present a family of many-body states to efficiently encode nontrivial impurity-bath correlations. We demonstrate its successful application to the anisotropic and two-lead Kondo models by studying their spatiotemporal dynamics and universal behavior in the correlations, relaxation times, and the differential conductance. We compare them to previous analytical and numerical results. In particular, we apply our method to study new types of nonequilibrium phenomena that have not been studied by other methods, such as long-time crossover in the ferromagnetic easy-plane Kondo model. The present approach will be applicable to a variety of unsolved problems in solid-state and ultracold-atomic systems.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a time-dependent renormalization-group approach is proposed to calculate trajectories of polarons following a sudden quench of the impurity-boson interaction strength, revealing how the polaronic cloud around the impurer forms in time.
Abstract: When a mobile impurity interacts with a surrounding bath of bosons, it forms a polaron. Numerous methods have been developed to calculate how the energy and the effective mass of the polaron are renormalized by the medium for equilibrium situations. Here, we address the much less studied nonequilibrium regime and investigate how polarons form dynamically in time. To this end, we develop a time-dependent renormalization-group approach which allows calculations of all dynamical properties of the system and takes into account the effects of quantum fluctuations in the polaron cloud. We apply this method to calculate trajectories of polarons following a sudden quench of the impurity-boson interaction strength, revealing how the polaronic cloud around the impurity forms in time. Such trajectories provide additional information about the polaron's properties which are challenging to extract directly from the spectral function measured experimentally using ultracold atoms. At strong couplings, our calculations predict the appearance of trajectories where the impurity wavers back at intermediate times as a result of quantum fluctuations. Our method is applicable to a broader class of nonequilibrium problems. As a check, we also apply it to calculate the spectral function and find good agreement with experimental results. At very strong couplings, we predict that quantum fluctuations lead to the appearance of a dark continuum with strongly suppressed spectral weight at low energies. While our calculations start from an effective Fr\"ohlich Hamiltonian describing impurities in a three-dimensional Bose-Einstein condensate, we also calculate the effects of additional terms in the Hamiltonian beyond the Fr\"ohlich paradigm. We demonstrate that the main effect of these additional terms on the attractive side of a Feshbach resonance is to renormalize the coupling strength of the effective Fr\"ohlich model.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a quantum many-body description of the excitation spectrum of Rydberg polarons in a Bose gas is presented, where the manybody Hamiltonian is solved with a functional determinant approach.
Abstract: We present a quantum many-body description of the excitation spectrum of Rydberg polarons in a Bose gas. The many-body Hamiltonian is solved with a functional determinant approach, and we extend this technique to describe Rydberg polarons of finite mass. Mean-field and classical descriptions of the spectrum are derived as approximations of the many-body theory. The various approaches are applied to experimental observations of polarons created by excitation of Rydberg atoms in a strontium Bose-Einstein condensate.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors consider an impurity atom immersed in a two-component Bose-Einstein condensate, where the impurity generates spin-wave excitations that can be directly measured by the Ramsey interference of surrounding atoms.
Abstract: The physics of quantum impurities coupled to a many-body environment is among the most important paradigms of condensed matter physics. In particular, the formation of polarons, quasiparticles dressed by the polarization cloud, is key to the understanding of transport, optical response, and induced interactions in a variety of materials. Despite recent remarkable developments in ultracold atoms and solid-state materials, the direct measurement of their ultimate building block, the polaron cloud, has remained a fundamental challenge. We propose and anlalyze a unique platform to probe time-resolved dynamics of polaron-cloud formation with an interferometric protocol. We consider an impurity atom immersed in a two-component Bose-Einstein condensate, where the impurity generates spin-wave excitations that can be directly measured by the Ramsey interference of surrounding atoms. The dressing by spin waves leads to the formation of magnetic polarons and reveals a unique interplay between few- and many-body physics that is signified by single- and multi-frequency oscillatory dynamics corresponding to the formation of many-body bound states. Finally, we discuss concrete experimental implementations in ultracold atoms.

Journal ArticleDOI
05 Dec 2018
TL;DR: In this paper, a simplified model with mixed dimensionality was proposed, where holes move through a Mott insulator unidirectionally while spin exchange interactions are two-dimensional.
Abstract: Surprising properties of doped Mott insulators are at the heart of many quantum materials, including transition metal oxides and organic materials. The key to unraveling complex phenomena observed in these systems lies in understanding the interplay of spin and charge degrees of freedom. One of the most debated questions concerns the nature of charge carriers in a background of fluctuating spins. To shed new light on this problem, we suggest a simplified model with mixed dimensionality, where holes move through a Mott insulator unidirectionally while spin exchange interactions are two dimensional. By studying individual holes in this system, we find direct evidence for the formation of mesonic bound states of holons and spinons, connected by a string of displaced spins -- a precursor of the spin-charge separation obtained in the 1D limit of the model. Our predictions can be tested using ultracold atoms in a quantum gas microscope, allowing to directly image spinons and holons, and reveal the short-range hidden string order which we predict in this model.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Ashida et al. as discussed by the authors proposed a canonical transformation that completely decouples the impurity from the bath degrees of freedom, and combined this transformation with a Gaussian ansatz for the fermionic bath, obtaining a family of variational many-body states that can efficiently encode the strong entanglement between the impurities and fermions of the bath.
Abstract: We provide a detailed formulation of the recently proposed variational approach [Y. Ashida, T. Shi, M.-C. Ba\~nuls, J. I. Cirac, and E. Demler, Phys. Rev. Lett. 121, 026805 (2018)] to study ground-state properties and out-of-equilibrium dynamics for generic quantum spin-impurity systems. Motivated by the original ideas of Tomonaga, Lee, Low, and Pines, we construct a canonical transformation that completely decouples the impurity from the bath degrees of freedom. By combining this transformation with a Gaussian ansatz for the fermionic bath, we obtain a family of variational many-body states that can efficiently encode the strong entanglement between the impurity and fermions of the bath. We give a detailed derivation of equations of motions in the imaginary- and real-time evolutions on the variational manifold. We benchmark our approach by applying it to investigate ground-state and dynamical properties of the anisotropic Kondo model and compare results with those obtained using the matrix-product state (MPS) ansatz. We show that our approach can achieve an accuracy comparable to MPS-based methods with several orders of magnitude fewer variational parameters than the corresponding MPS ansatz. Comparisons to the Yosida ansatz and the exact solution from the Bethe ansatz are also discussed. We use our approach to investigate the two-lead Kondo model and analyze its long-time spatiotemporal behavior and the conductance behavior at finite bias and magnetic fields. The obtained results are consistent with the previous findings in the Anderson model and the exact solutions at the Toulouse point.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the effects of parametric instabilities on the short-time heating process of periodically-driven bosons in 2D optical lattices with a continuous transverse (tube) degree of freedom were investigated.
Abstract: We experimentally investigate the effects of parametric instabilities on the short-time heating process of periodically-driven bosons in 2D optical lattices with a continuous transverse (tube) degree of freedom. We analyze three types of periodic drives: (i) linear along the x-lattice direction only, (ii) linear along the lattice diagonal, and (iii) circular in the lattice plane. In all cases, we demonstrate that the BEC decay is dominated by the emergence of unstable Bogoliubov modes, rather than scattering in higher Floquet bands, in agreement with recent theoretical predictions. The observed BEC depletion rates are much higher when shaking both along x and y directions, as opposed to only x or only y. This is understood as originating from the interaction-induced non-separability along the two lattice directions. We also report an explosion of the heating rates at large drive amplitudes, and suggest a phenomenological description beyond Bogoliubov theory. In this strongly-coupled regime, circular drives heat faster than diagonal drives, which illustrates the non-trivial dependence of the heating on the choice of drive.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the Coulomb drag effect of mobile quantum impurities interacting with a fermionic bath form quasiparticles known as Fermi polarons, and the authors demonstrate that a force applied to the bath particles can generate a drag force of similar magnitude acting on the impurities.
Abstract: Mobile quantum impurities interacting with a fermionic bath form quasiparticles known as Fermi polarons. We demonstrate that a force applied to the bath particles can generate a drag force of similar magnitude acting on the impurities, realizing a novel, nonperturbative Coulomb drag effect. To prove this, we calculate the fully self-consistent, frequency-dependent transconductivity at zero temperature in the Baym-Kadanoff conserving approximation. We apply our theory to excitons and exciton polaritons interacting with a bath of charge carriers in a doped semiconductor embedded in a microcavity. In external electric and magnetic fields, the drag effect enables electrical control of excitons and may pave the way for the implementation of gauge fields for excitons and polaritons. Moreover, a reciprocal effect may facilitate optical manipulation of electron transport. Our findings establish transport measurements as a novel, powerful tool for probing the many-body physics of mobile quantum impurities.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present a theory describing how noise magnetometry with spin probes can directly address several questions that have emerged in experimental studies of 1D systems, including those in topological materials.
Abstract: The study of exotic one-dimensional states, particularly those at the edges of topological materials, demand new experimental probes that can access the interplay between charge and spin degrees of freedom. One potential approach is to use a single spin probe, such as a nitrogen vacancy center in diamond, which has recently emerged as a versatile tool to probe nanoscale systems in a noninvasive fashion. Here, we present a theory describing how noise magnetometry with spin probes can directly address several questions that have emerged in experimental studies of 1D systems, including those in topological materials. We show that by controlling the spin degree of freedom of the probe, it is possible to measure locally and independently local charge and spin correlations of 1D systems. Visualization of 1D edge states, as well as sampling correlations with wave-vector resolution can be achieved by tuning the probe-to-sample distance. Furthermore, temperature-dependent measurements of magnetic noise can clearly delineate the dominant scattering mechanism (impurities versus interactions)—this is of particular relevance to quantum spin Hall measurements where conductance quantization is not perfect. The possibility to probe both charge and spin excitations in a wide range of length scales opens new pathways to bridging the large gap between atomic scale resolution of scanning probes and global transport measurements.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the Luttinger liquid model is used to study the non-equilibrium dynamics in a quenched pair of one-dimensional Bose gases with density imbalance.
Abstract: We theoretically investigate the non-equilibrium dynamics in a quenched pair of one-dimensional Bose gases with density imbalance. We describe the system using its low-energy effective theory, the Luttinger liquid model. In this framework the system shows strictly integrable relaxation dynamics via dephasing of its approximate many-body eigenstates. In the balanced case, this leads to the well-known light-cone-like establishment of a prethermalized state, which can be described by a generalized Gibbs ensemble. In the imbalanced case the integrable dephasing leads to a state that, counter-intuitively, closely resembles a thermal equilibrium state. The approach to this state is characterized by two separate light-cone dynamics with distinct characteristic velocities. This behavior is a result of the fact that in the imbalanced case observables are not aligned with the conserved quantities of the integrable system. We discuss a concrete experimental realization to study this effect using matterwave interferometry and many-body revivals on an atom chip.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the existence of parametric instabilities in weakly-interacting Bose-Einstein condensates in strongly-driven optical lattices through momentum-resolved measurements was identified.
Abstract: Periodically-driven quantum systems are currently explored in view of realizing novel many-body phases of matter. This approach is particularly promising in gases of ultracold atoms, where sophisticated shaking protocols can be realized and inter-particle interactions are well controlled. The combination of interactions and time-periodic driving, however, often leads to uncontrollable heating and instabilities, potentially preventing practical applications of Floquet-engineering in large many-body quantum systems. In this work, we experimentally identify the existence of parametric instabilities in weakly-interacting Bose-Einstein condensates in strongly-driven optical lattices through momentum-resolved measurements. Parametric instabilities can trigger the destruction of weakly-interacting Bose-Einstein condensates through the rapid growth of collective excitations, in particular in systems with weak harmonic confinement transverse to the lattice axis.


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a simplified model with mixed dimensionality was proposed, where holes move through a Mott insulator unidirectionally while spin exchange interactions are two-dimensional.
Abstract: Surprising properties of doped Mott insulators are at the heart of many quantum materials, including transition metal oxides and organic materials. The key to unraveling complex phenomena observed in these systems lies in understanding the interplay of spin and charge degrees of freedom. One of the most debated questions concerns the nature of charge carriers in a background of fluctuating spins. To shed new light on this problem, we suggest a simplified model with mixed dimensionality, where holes move through a Mott insulator unidirectionally while spin exchange interactions are two dimensional. By studying individual holes in this system, we find direct evidence for the formation of mesonic bound states of holons and spinons, connected by a string of displaced spins -- a precursor of the spin-charge separation obtained in the 1D limit of the model. Our predictions can be tested using ultracold atoms in a quantum gas microscope, allowing to directly image spinons and holons, and reveal the short-range hidden string order which we predict in this model.

Proceedings ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a variational ansatz based on Gaussian states for (1+1)-dimensional lattice gauge models is introduced, which is in excellent agreement with data from numerical calculations with tensor networks.
Abstract: We introduce a variational ansatz based on Gaussian states for (1+1)-dimensional lattice gauge models. To this end we identify a set of unitary transformations which decouple the gauge degrees of freedom from the matter fields. Using our ansatz, we study static aspects as well as real-time dynamics of string breaking in two (1+1)-dimensional theories, namely QED and two-color QCD. We show that our ansatz captures the relevant features and is in excellent agreement with data from numerical calculations with tensor networks.

Posted Content
TL;DR: The magnon sound mode is an excitation of the longitudinal spin component with frequencies below the spin wave continuum in gapped ferromagnets and can be detected with recently-introduced spin qubit magnetometers as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: The non-interacting magnon gas description in ferromagnets breaks down at finite magnon density where momentum-conserving collisions between magnons become important. Observation of the collision-dominated regime, however, has been hampered by the lack of probes to access the energy and lengthscales characteristic of this regime. Here we identify a key signature of the collision-dominated hydrodynamic regime---a magnon sound mode---which governs dynamics at low frequencies and can be detected with recently-introduced spin qubit magnetometers. The magnon sound mode is an excitation of the longitudinal spin component with frequencies below the spin wave continuum in gapped ferromagnets. We also show that, in the presence of exchange interactions with SU(2) symmetry, the ferromagnet hosts an usual hydrodynamic regime that lacks Galilean symmetry at all energy and lengthscales. The hydrodynamic sound mode, if detected, can lead to a new platform to explore hydrodynamic behavior in quantum materials.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the dynamics of an atomic BEC subject to local dissipation in the form of atom losses were studied and it was shown that there is a critical loss rate at which the system undergoes a continuous dissipative phase transition from a homogenous state into a state which contains a sonic horizon.
Abstract: We study the dynamics of an atomic BEC subject to local dissipation in the form of atom losses. We show there is a critical loss rate at which the system undergoes a continuous dissipative phase transition from a homogenous state into a state which contains a sonic horizon. The latter drastically alters the behavior of the system by screening the drain. Dissipation leads to two types of fluctuations. First, fluctuations are generated by particles emitted in the reservoir. Both above and below the critical loss, these result in thermal emission of phonons with a temperature set by the loss rate and the chemical potential. The second type of fluctuation results from scattering on the drain and gives rise to a particular correlation pattern that can be observed in the density-density correlation. Aside from correlations between in an out scattered modes, outgoing particles are correlated with localized modes through a process that is reminiscent of Hawking radiation. Finally, we briefly discuss the dynamics of the system when there are two drains, in which case it is possible to construct a black hole laser.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A modified version of the excitation scheme introduced by Volchkov et al. is applied to address the critical state at the mobility edge of the Anderson localization transition, and the projected image of the cloud is shown to inherit multifractality and to display universal density correlations.
Abstract: We propose to apply a modified version of the excitation scheme introduced by Volchkov et al. on bosons experiencing hyperfine state dependent disorder to address the critical state at the mobility edge of the Anderson localization transition, and to observe its intriguing multifractal structure. An optimally designed, spatially focused external radio frequency pulse can be applied to generate transitions to eigenstates in a narrow energy window close to the mobility edge, where critical scaling and multifractality emerge. Alternatively, two-photon laser scanning microscopy is proposed to address individual localized states even close to the transition. The projected image of the cloud is shown to inherit multifractality and to display universal density correlations. Interactions - unavoidably present - are taken into account by solving the Gross-Pitaevskii equations, and their destructive effect on the spectral resolution and the multifractal spectrum is analyzed. Time of flight images of the excited states are predicted to show interference fringes in the localized phase, while they allow one to map equal energy surfaces deep in the metallic phase.

Posted Content
29 Oct 2018
TL;DR: In this paper, a magnon sound mode was identified as an excitation of the longitudinal spin component with frequencies below the spin wave continuum in gapped ferromagnets, which can be readily detected with recently-introduced spin qubit magnetometers.
Abstract: The non-interacting magnon gas description in ferromagnets breaks down at finite magnon density wherein momentum-conserving collisions between magnons become important. Observation of the collision-dominated regime, however, has been hampered by the lack of probes to access the energy and lengthscales characteristic of this regime. Here we identify a key signature of the collision-dominated hydrodynamic regime --- a magnon sound mode --- which governs dynamics at low frequencies and can be readily detected with recently-introduced spin qubit magnetometers. The magnon sound mode is manifested as an excitation of the longitudinal spin component with frequencies below the spin wave continuum in gapped ferromagnets. At sufficiently large frequencies, the sound mode is damped by viscous forces. The hydrodynamic sound mode, if detected, can lead to a new platform to explore hydrodynamic behavior in quantum materials.