arXiv subjects

Akash Jain

Publications and source records attributed to Akash Jain.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

All-order fluctuating hydrodynamics of the SYK lattice

The SYK model has played an important role in recent developments in many-body quantum chaos. We study a spatially local generalisation of it: the SYK lattice. Starting from the nonlinear action of pseudo-Goldstone bosons that dominate its dynamics at low temperatures, in the long wavelength limit we reorganise this action as the effective field theory for fluctuating hydrodynamics, thereby showing how the hydrodynamic degrees of freedom embed into the microscopic description of the model. We compute the hydrodynamic effective action to high orders in the derivative expansion and determine all the corresponding transport coefficients. Hence this work derives hydrodynamics from the microscopic description of a strongly coupled quantum many-body system.

hep-th↗

arXiv2026

Quantum fluctuations in hydrodynamics and quantum long-time tails

We construct a quantum Schwinger-Keldysh (SK) effective field theory for the diffusive hydrodynamics of a conserved scalar field. Quantum corrections within the SK framework are guided by fluctuation-dissipation relations, enforced via a dynamical Kubo-Martin-Schwinger (KMS) symmetry. We find that the KMS symmetry necessarily generates fluctuation contributions in the SK effective action at all orders in the noise field, thereby giving rise to intrinsically non-Gaussian noise. We use our results to compute one-loop quantum corrections to the two-point density-density retarded correlation function, leading to a quantum generalization of hydrodynamic long-time tails. Our results apply at arbitrarily high orders in $\hbar$. The one-loop results for retarded correlation functions have been expressed in terms of a family of polynomials. We also provide a closed-form expression for the one-loop results at leading order in the wavevector expansion.

hep-th↗

arXiv2026

Thermodynamics of ideal spin fluids and pseudo-gauge ambiguity

Conserved currents of relativistic spin fluids derived from microscopic models are known to violate local thermodynamic relations. We present a systematic analysis of pseudo-gauge improvements in ideal spin hydrodynamics and identify a family of pseudo-gauges where standard thermodynamic relations are satisfied. We quantify pseudo-gauge ambiguities in the spin equation of state and derive universal thermodynamic relations that apply to conserved currents in any pseudo-gauge. As an application, we extract the thermodynamic variables and equations of state for free Dirac fermions and scalar fields.

hep-th↗

arXiv2025

On the temperature of an active nematic

We employ a novel hydrodynamic framework for active matter coupled to an environment to study the local temperature of an active nematic, assuming proximity to thermal equilibrium. We show that, due to the mechanosensitivity of fuel consumption, linearized temperature correlations in a homogeneous active nematic steady state remain unaffected by activity. However, we demonstrate that local shearing and twisting cause a confined active nematic undergoing a spontaneous flow transition to develop a distinctive inhomogeneous temperature profile, serving as a thermal signature of activity.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2025

Resistive relativistic magnetohydrodynamics without Amperes Law

Resistive magnetohydrodynamics is thought to play a key role in transient astrophysical phenomena such as black hole flares and neutron star magnetospheres. When performing numerical simulations of resistive magnetohydrodynamics, one is faced with the issue that Amperes law becomes stiff in the high conductivity limit which poses challenges to the numerical evolution. We show that using a description of resistive magnetohydrodynamics based on higher form symmetry, one can perform simulations with a generalized dual Faraday tensor without having to use Amperes Law, thereby avoiding the stiffness problem. We also explain the relation of this dual model to a traditional description of resistive magnetohydrodynamics and how causality is guaranteed by introducing second order corrections.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2024

Fractonic solids

Fractons are exotic quasiparticles whose mobility in space is restricted by symmetries. In potential real-world realisations, fractons are likely lodged to a physical material rather than absolute space. Motivated by this, we propose and explore a new symmetry principle that restricts the motion of fractons relative to a physical solid. Unlike models with restricted mobility in absolute space, these fractonic solids admit gauge-invariant momentum density, are compatible with boost symmetry, and can consistently be coupled to gravity. We also propose a holographic model for fractonic solids.

hep-th↗

arXiv2024

Hydrodynamics of thermal active matter

Active matter concerns many-body systems comprised of living or self-driven agents that collectively exhibit macroscopic phenomena distinct from conventional passive matter. Using Schwinger-Keldysh effective field theory, we develop a novel hydrodynamic framework for thermal active matter that accounts for energy balance, local temperature variations, and the ensuing stochastic effects. By modelling active matter as a driven open system, we show that the source of active contributions to hydrodynamics, violations of fluctuation-dissipation theorems, and detailed balance is rooted in the breaking of time-translation symmetry due to the presence of fuel consumption and an external environmental bath. In addition, our framework allows for non-equilibrium steady states that produce entropy, with a well-defined notion of steady-state temperature. We use our framework of active hydrodynamics to develop effective field theory actions for active superfluids and active nematics that offer a first-principle derivation of various active transport coefficients and feature activity-induced phase transitions. We also show how to incorporate temperature, energy and noise in fluctuating hydrodynamics for active matter. Our work suggests a broader perspective on active matter that can leave an imprint across scales.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2024

Higher-group global symmetry and the bosonic M5 brane

Higher-group symmetries are combinations of higher-form symmetries which appear in various field theories. In this paper, we explain how higher-group symmetries arise in 10d and 11d supergravities when the latter are coupled to brane sources. Motivated by this observation, we study field theories at zero and finite temperature invariant under a class of continuous Abelian higher-group symmetries. We restrict the analysis to the low-energy regime where the dynamical field content exclusively consists of Goldstone fields arising from the spontaneous breaking of higher-group and spacetime symmetries. Invariant quantities are constructed and the phases of matter are classified according to the pattern of spontaneous symmetry breaking. With respect to supergravity, we highlight how such Goldstone effective theories provide a symmetry-based interpretation for the theories living on D/M-branes. As an explicit example we construct a 6-group invariant action for the bosonic M5 brane, consistent with the self-duality of the 3-form field strength on the brane. While the self-duality condition in the bosonic case needs to be imposed externally as a constraint at zero temperature, we find an equilibrium effective action for the bosonic M5 brane at finite temperature that inherently implements self-duality.

hep-th↗

arXiv2024

Dipole superfluid hydrodynamics II

We present a dissipative hydrodynamic theory of "s-wave dipole superfluids" that arise in phases of translation-invariant and dipole-symmetric models in which the U(1) symmetry is spontaneously broken. The hydrodynamic description is subtle on account of an analogue of dangerously irrelevant operators, which requires us to formalize an entirely new derivative counting scheme suitable for these fluids. We use our hydrodynamic model to investigate the linearized response of such a fluid, characterized by sound modes $\omega \sim \pm k - ik^2$, shear modes $\omega\sim-ik^2$, and magnon-like propagating modes $\omega \sim \pm k^2 - ik^4$ that are the dipole-invariant version of superfluid "second sound" modes. We find that these fluids can also admit equilibrium states with "dipole superflow" that resemble a polarized medium. Finally, we couple our theory to slowly varying background fields, which allows us to compute response functions of hydrodynamic operators and Kubo formulas for hydrodynamic transport coefficients.

hep-th↗

arXiv2023

Schwinger-Keldysh effective field theory for stable and causal relativistic hydrodynamics

We construct stable and causal effective field theories (EFTs) for describing statistical fluctuations in relativistic diffusion and relativistic hydrodynamics. These EFTs are fully non-linear, including couplings to background sources, and enable us to compute n-point time-ordered correlation functions including the effects of statistical fluctuations. The EFTs we construct are inspired by the Maxwell-Cattaneo model of relativistic diffusion and M\"uller-Israel-Stewart model of relativistic hydrodynamics respectively, and have been derived using both the Martin-Siggia-Rose and Schwinger-Keldysh formalisms. The EFTs non-linearly realise the dynamical Kubo-Martin-Schwinger (KMS) symmetry, which ensures that n-point correlation functions and interactions in the theory satisfy the appropriate fluctuation-dissipation theorems. Since these EFTs typically admit ultraviolet sectors that are not fixed by the low-energy infrared symmetries, we find that they simultaneously admit multiple realisations of the dynamical KMS symmetry. We also comment on certain obstructions to including statistical fluctuations in the recently-proposed stable and causal Bemfica-Disconzi-Noronha-Kovtun model of relativistic hydrodynamics.

hep-th↗

arXiv2023

Dipole superfluid hydrodynamics

We construct a theory of hydrodynamic transport for systems with conserved dipole moment, U(1) charge, energy, and momentum. These models have been considered in the context of fractons, since their elementary and isolated charges are immobile by symmetry, and have two known translation-invariant gapless phases: a "p-wave dipole superfluid" phase where the dipole symmetry is spontaneously broken and a "s-wave dipole superfluid" phase where both the U(1) and dipole symmetries are spontaneously broken. We argue on grounds of symmetry and thermodynamics that there is no transitionally-invariant gapless fluid with unbroken dipole symmetry. In this work, we primarily focus on the hydrodynamic description of p-wave dipole superfluids, including leading dissipative corrections. That theory has, in a sense, a dynamical scaling exponent $z=2$, and its spectrum of fluctuations includes novel subdiffusive modes $\omega \sim -i k^4$ in the shear sector and magnon-like sound mode $\omega\sim \pm k^2 -i k^2$. By coupling the fluid to background fields, we find response functions of the various symmetry currents. We also present a preliminary generalization of our work to s-wave dipole superfluids, which resemble $z=1$ fluids and feature sound waves and diffusive shear modes, as in an ordinary fluid. However, the spectrum also contains a magnon-like second-sound mode $\omega\sim \pm k^2 \pm k^4 -i k^4$ with subdiffusive attenuation.

hep-th↗

arXiv2023

Approximate higher-form symmetries, topological defects, and dynamical phase transitions

Higher-form symmetries are a valuable tool for classifying topological phases of matter. However, emergent higher-form symmetries in interacting many-body quantum systems are not typically exact due to the presence of topological defects. In this paper, we develop a systematic framework for building effective theories with approximate higher-form symmetries, i.e. higher-form symmetries that are weakly explicitly broken. We focus on a continuous U(1) q-form symmetry and study various patterns of symmetry breaking. This includes spontaneous or explicit breaking of higher-form symmetries, as well as pseudo-spontaneous symmetry breaking patterns where the higher-form symmetry is both spontaneously and explicitly broken. We uncover a web of dualities between such phases and highlight their role in describing the presence of dynamical higher-form vortices. In order to study the out-of-equilibrium dynamics of these phases of matter, we formulate respective hydrodynamic theories and study the spectra of excitations exhibiting higher-form charge relaxation and Goldstone relaxation effects. We show that our framework is able to describe various phase transitions due to proliferation of vortices or defects. This includes the melting transition in smectic crystals, the plasma phase transition from polarised gases to magnetohydrodynamics, the spin-ice transition, the superfluid to neutral fluid transition and the Meissner effect in superconductors, among many others.

hep-th↗

arXiv2022

Hydrodynamics of plastic deformations in electronic crystals

We construct a new hydrodynamic framework describing plastic deformations in electronic crystals. The framework accounts for pinning, phase, and momentum relaxation effects due to translational disorder, diffusion due to the presence of interstitials and vacancies, and strain relaxation due to plasticity and dislocations. We obtain the hydrodynamic mode spectrum and correlation functions in various regimes in order to identify the signatures of plasticity in electronic crystal phases. In particular, we show that proliferation of dislocations de-pins the spatially resolved conductivity until the crystal melts, after which point a new phase of a pinned electronic liquid emerges. In addition, the mode spectrum exhibits a competition between pinning and plasticity effects, with the damping rate of some modes being controlled by pinning-induced phase relaxation and some by plasticity-induced strain relaxation. We find that the recently discovered damping-attenuation relation continues to hold for pinned-induced phase relaxation even in the presence of plasticity and dislocations. We also comment on various experimental setups that could probe the effects of plasticity. The framework developed here is applicable to a large class of physical systems including electronic Wigner crystals, multicomponent charge density waves, and ordinary crystals.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2021

Approximate symmetries, pseudo-Goldstones, and the second law of thermodynamics

We propose a general hydrodynamic framework for systems with spontaneously broken approximate symmetries. The second law of thermodynamics naturally results in relaxation in the hydrodynamic equations, and enables us to derive a universal relation between damping and diffusion of pseudo- Goldstones. We discover entirely new physical effects sensitive to explicitly broken symmetries. We focus on systems with approximate U(1) and translation symmetries, with direct applications to pinned superfluids and charge density waves. We also comment on the implications for chiral perturbation theory.

hep-th↗

arXiv2021

Fractons in curved space

We consistently couple simple continuum field theories with fracton excitations to curved spacetime backgrounds. We consider homogeneous and isotropic fracton field theories, with a conserved $U(1)$ charge and dipole moment. Coupling to background fields allows us to consistently define a stress-energy tensor for these theories and obtain the respective Ward identities. Along the way, we find evidence for a mixed gauge-gravitational anomaly in the symmetric tensor gauge theory which naturally couples to conserved dipoles. Our results generalise to systems with arbitrarily higher conserved moments, in particular, a conserved quadrupole moment.

hep-th↗

arXiv2021

Notes on symmetries in particle physics

These are introductory notes on symmetries in quantum field theory and how they apply to particle physics. The notes cover the fundamentals of group theory, their representations, Lie groups, and Lie algebras, along with an elaborate discussion of the representations of SU(N), Lorentz, and Poincare groups and their respective algebras. We spend a lot of time on the realisation of these symmetry groups in quantum field theory, as both global and gauge symmetries, as well as their spontaneous breaking and the Higgs mechanism. In the end, we culminate all the lessons from the course to enumerate the symmetries and field content of the Standard Model of particle physics and write down the Standard Model Lagrangian. Special consideration is given to how the weak-force gauge bosons and the matter fields obtain their mass via the Higgs mechanism.

hep-th↗

arXiv2021

Hydrodynamic effective field theory and the analyticity of hydrostatic correlators

We study one-loop corrections to retarded and symmetric hydrostatic correlation functions within the Schwinger-Keldysh effective field theory framework for relativistic hydrodynamics, focusing on charge diffusion. We first consider the simplified setup with only diffusive charge density fluctuations, and then augment it with momentum fluctuations in a model where the sound modes can be ignored. We show that the loop corrections, which generically induce non-analyticities and long-range effects at finite frequency, non-trivially preserve analyticity of retarded correlation functions in spatial momentum due to the KMS constraint, as a manifestation of thermal screening. For the purposes of this analysis, we develop an interacting field theory for diffusive hydrodynamics, seen as a limit of relativistic hydrodynamics in the absence of temperature and longitudinal velocity fluctuations.

hep-th↗

arXiv2020

Effective field theory for hydrodynamics without boosts

We formulate the Schwinger-Keldysh effective field theory of hydrodynamics without boost symmetry. This includes a spacetime covariant formulation of classical hydrodynamics without boosts with an additional conserved particle/charge current coupled to Aristotelian background sources. We find that, up to first order in derivatives, the theory is characterised by the thermodynamic equation of state and a total of 29 independent transport coefficients, in particular, 3 hydrostatic, 9 non-hydrostatic non-dissipative, and 17 dissipative. Furthermore, we study the spectrum of linearised fluctuations around anisotropic equilibrium states with non-vanishing fluid velocity. This analysis reveals a pair of sound modes that propagate at different speeds along and opposite to the fluid flow, one charge diffusion mode, and two distinct shear modes along and perpendicular to the fluid velocity. We present these results in a new hydrodynamic frame that is linearly stable irrespective of the boost symmetry in place. This provides a unified covariant stable approach for simultaneously treating Lorentzian, Galilean, and Lifshitz fluids within an effective field theory framework and sets the stage for future studies of non-relativistic intertwined patterns of symmetry breaking.

hep-th↗