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Quantum phase transitions in matrix product systems

Michael M. Wolf·Gerardo Ortiz·Frank Verstraete·J. Ignacio Cirac
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Abstract

We investigate quantum phase transitions (QPTs) in spin chain systems characterized by local Hamiltonians with matrix product ground states. We show how to theoretically engineer such QPT points between states with predetermined properties. While some of the characteristics of these transitions are familiar, like the appearance of singularities in the thermodynamic limit, diverging correlation length, and vanishing energy gap, others differ from the standard paradigm: In particular, the ground state energy remains analytic, and the entanglement entropy of a half-chain stays finite. Examples demonstrate that these kinds of transitions can occur at the triple point of `conventional' QPTs.

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Michael M. Wolf, Gerardo Ortiz, Frank Verstraete, J. Ignacio Cirac. 2005-12-08. Quantum phase transitions in matrix product systems. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevlett.97.110403

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