arXiv subjects

Jochen Gemmer

Publications and source records attributed to Jochen Gemmer.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Examination of classical simulations for Heisenberg-Langevin equations for spin-1/2

A system of spins coupled to a bath is a traditional setup in open quantum systems. Through Heisenberg's equation, the spin dynamics can be modeled by a set of first-order differential equations. Interpreting the terms as colored noise and non-Markovian damping, one can write them as quantummechanical Heisenberg-Langevin (HL) equations. These are notoriously difficult to solve because of the high dimensionality of the Hilbert space. Classical generalized Langevin equations, involving non-Markovian damping and colored noise, are well understood and can be treated numerically with relative ease. Thus, a classical ansatz can be made by substituting quantum expectation values with classical functions. This allows the application of standard methods developed for classical stochastic dynamical systems to tackle spin dynamics. However, this approach is uncontrolled and should be benchmarked against known quantum dynamics. In this investigation, a Hamiltonian for spin dynamics is modified to obtain a setup analogous to the Weisskopf-Wigner (WW) theory of spontaneous emission, enabling a comparison of the results. This will be compared for T = 0 and with a slight adaptation in the high-temperature limit.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2026

Resonant level model from a Krylov perspective: Lanczos coefficients in a quadratic model

We study the Lanczos coefficients in a quadratic model given by an impurity interacting with a multi-mode field of fermions, also known as resonant level model. We analytically derive closed expressions for the Lanczos coefficients of Majorana fermion operators of the impurity for different structures of the coupling to the hybridization band at zero temperature. While the model remains quadratic, we find that the growth of the Lanczos coefficients structurally depends strongly on the chosen coupling. Concretely, we find $(i)$ approximately constant, $(ii)$ exactly constant, $(iii)$ square root-like as well as $(iv)$ linear growth in the same model. We further argue that in fact through suitably chosen couplings, essentially arbitrary Lanczos coefficients can be obtained in this model. These altogether evince the inadequacy of the Lanczos coefficients as a reliable criterion for classifying the integrability or chaoticity of the systems. Eventually, in the wide-band limit, we find exponential decay of autocorrelation functions in all the settings $(i)-(iv)$, which demonstrates the different structures of the Lanczos coefficients not being indicative of different physical behavior.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2026

Random matrix theory universality of current operators in spin-$S$ Heisenberg chains

Quantum chaotic systems exhibit certain universal statistical properties that closely resemble predictions from random matrix theory (RMT). With respect to observables, it has recently been conjectured that, when truncated to a sufficiently narrow energy window, their statistical properties can be described by an unitarily invariant ensemble, and testable criteria have been introduced, which are based on the scaling behavior of free cumulants. In this paper, we investigate the conjecture numerically in translationally invariant Heisenberg spin chains with spin quantum number $S =\frac{1}{2},1,\frac{3}{2}$. Combining a quantum-typicality-based numerical method with the exploitation of the system's symmetries, we study the spin current operator and find clear evidence of consistency with the proposed criteria in chaotic cases. Our findings further support the conjecture of the existence of RMT universality as manifest in the observable properties in quantum chaotic systems.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2025

Scaling of free cumulants in closed system-bath setups

The Eigenstate Thermalization Hypothesis (ETH) has been established as a cornerstone for understanding thermalization in quantum many-body systems. Recently, there has been growing interest in the full ETH, which extends the framework of the conventional ETH and postulates a smooth function to describe the multi-point correlations among matrix elements. Within this framework, free cumulants play a central role, and most previous studies have primarily focused on closed systems. In this paper, we extend the analysis to a system-bath setup, considering both an idealized case with a random-matrix bath and a more realistic scenario where the bath is modeled as a defect Ising chain. In both cases, we uncover a universal scaling of the microcanonical free cumulants of observables associated with the central system Hamiltonian with respect to the interaction strength. Furthermore we establish a connection between this scaling behavior and the thermalization dynamics of the thermal free cumulants of corresponding observables.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2025

Boundary-driven magnetization transport in the spin-$1/2$ XXZ chain: Role of the system-bath coupling strength and timescales

Understanding the transport properties of quantum many-body systems is a central challenge in condensed matter and statistical physics. Theoretical studies usually rely on two main approaches: Dynamics of linear-response functions in closed systems and boundary-driven dynamics governed by Markovian master equations for open systems. While the equivalence of their dynamical behavior has been explored in recent studies, a systematic comparison of the transport coefficients obtained from these two classes of approaches remains a largely open question. Here, we address this gap by comparing and contrasting the dc diffusion constant $\mathcal{D}_{\text{dc}}$ according to the two approaches, focusing on the specific example of magnetization transport in the spin-$1/2$ XXZ chain. Using exact numerical simulations for finite system sizes, we find (i) a clear mismatch between the two $\mathcal{D}_{\text{dc}}$ and (ii) a strong dependence of $\mathcal{D}_{\text{dc}}$ on the system-bath coupling strength for the open system, where neither (i) nor (ii) tend to vanish in the thermodynamic limit. These findings suggest limitations of the open-system approach to transport coefficients. To gain insight into the origin of (i) and (ii), we go beyond $\mathcal{D}_{\text{dc}}$ and analyze the full time dependence of the diffusion coefficient $D(t)$ in the open system. In this way, we find that both (i) and (ii) vanish up to a finite time scale. While this time scale gradually increases with system size and tends to be macroscopic in the thermodynamic limit, this increase is still slow compared to the increase of the time to reach the steady state, where (i) and (ii) do not vanish. This observation can be seen as a wrong, yet unavoidable order of limits of long times first and large system sizes afterwards.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2025

Eigenstate Thermalization Hypothesis and Random Matrix Theory Universality in Few-Body Systems

In this paper, we study the Feingold-Peres model as an example, which is a well-known paradigm of quantum chaos. Using semiclassical analysis and numerical simulations, we study the statistical properties of observables in few-body systems with chaotic classical limits and the emergence of random matrix theory universality. More specifically, we focus on: 1) the applicability of the eigenstate thermalization hypothesis in few-body systems and the dependence of its form on the effective Planck constant and 2) the existence of a universal random matrix theory description of observables when truncated to a small microcanonical energy window. Our results provide new insights into the established field of few-body quantum chaos and help bridge it to modern perspectives, such as the general eigenstate thermalization hypothesis (ETH).

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2025

Lanczos-Pascal approach to correlation functions in chaotic quantum systems

We suggest a method to compute approximations to temporal correlation functions of few-body observables in chaotic many-body systems in the thermodynamic limit based on the respective Lanczos coefficients. Given the knowledge of these Lanczos coefficients, the method is very cheap. Usually accuracy increases with more Lanczos coefficients taken into account, however, we numerically find and analytically argue that the convergence is rather quick, if the Lanczos coefficients exhibit a smoothly increasing structure. For pertinent examples we compare with data from dynamical typicality computations for large but finite systems and find good agreement if few Lanczos coefficients are taken into account. From the method it is evident that in these cases the correlation functions are well described by a low number of damped oscillations.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2025

Scrutinizing the Mori memory function for diffusion in periodic quantum systems

Diffusion is an ubiquitous phenomenon. It is a widespread belief that as long as the area under a current autocorrelation function converges in time, the corresponding spatiotemporal density dynamics should be diffusive. This may be viewed as a result of the combination of linear response theory with the Einstein relation. However, attempts to derive this statement from first principles are notoriously challenging. We first present a counterexample by constructing a correlation functions of some density wave, such that the area under the corresponding current autocorrelation function converges, but the dynamics do not obey a diffusion equation. Then we will introduce a method based on the recursion method and the Mori memory formalism, that may help to actually identify diffusion. For a decisive answer, one would have to know infinitely many so called Lanczos coefficients, which is unattainable in most cases. However, in the examples examined in this paper, we find that the practically computable number of Lanczos coefficients suffices for a strong guess.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2024

Estimate of equilibration times of quantum correlation functions in the thermodynamic limit based on Lanczos coefficients

We study the equilibration times $T_\text{eq}$ of local observables in quantum chaotic systems by considering their auto-correlation functions. Based on the recursion method, we suggest a scheme to estimate $T_\text{eq}$ from the corresponding Lanczos coefficients that is expected to hold in the thermodynamic limit. We numerically find that if the observable eventually shows smoothly growing Lanczos coefficients, a finite number of the former is sufficient for a reasonable estimate of the equilibration time. This implies that equilibration occurs on a realistic time scale much shorter than the life of the universe. The numerical findings are further supported by analytical arguments.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2024

Evidence for simple "arrow of time functions" in closed chaotic quantum systems

Through an explicit construction, we assign to any infinite temperature autocorrelation function $C(t)$ a set of functions $\alpha^n(t)$. The construction of $\alpha^n(t)$ from $C(t)$ requires the first $2n$ temporal derivatives of $C(t)$ at times $0$ and $t$. Our focus is on $\alpha^n(t)$ that (almost) monotonously decrease, we call these ``arrows of time functions" (AOTFs). For autocorrelation functions of few body observables we numerically observe the following: An AOTF featuring a low $n$ may always be found unless the the system is in or close to a nonchaotic regime with respect to a variation of some system parameter. All $\alpha^n(t)$ put upper bounds to the respective autocorrelation functions, i.e. $\alpha^n(t) \geq C^2(t)$. Thus the implication of the existence of an AOTF is comparable to that of the H-Theorem, as it indicates a directed approach to equilibrium. We furthermore argue that our numerical finding may to some extent be traced back to the operator growth hypothesis. This argument is laid out in the framework of the so-called recursion method.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2024

Maximum Expected Reward Lines If Non Specialist (for darts)

Owning up to the authors' occasional mixed performances when playing darts we follow up on the ingenious work to determine the optimal aim to score high by Tibshirani et. al [JRS A 174, 213 (2011)] and expand on maximal expected reward lines assuming spread profiles beyond the standard case of an isotropic distribution by investigating situations in which a players' aiming quality differs in horizontal and vertical direction, arguably representing more realistic profiles. To render the theoretical findings applicable, we determine regions $\Gamma$ on the dart board that may serve as an aid to players in order to maximise their score depending on whether said areas are hit sufficiently often. Lastly we compare all three strategies with the simple approaches to always aim for triple 20 or bulls eye respectively, probing their usefulness.

physics.pop-ph↗

arXiv2024

Lindblad dynamics from spatio-temporal correlation functions in nonintegrable spin-1/2 chains with different boundary conditions

We investigate the Lindblad equation in the context of boundary-driven magnetization transport in spin-$1/2$ chains. Our central question is whether the nonequilibrium steady state of the open system, including its buildup in time, can be described on the basis of the dynamics in the closed system. To this end, we rely on a previous work [Phys. Rev. B 108, L201119 (2023)], where a description in terms of spatio-temporal correlation functions has been suggested in the case of weak driving and small system-bath coupling. Because this work has focused on integrable systems and periodic boundary conditions, we here extend the analysis in three directions: We (i) consider nonintegrable systems, (ii) take into account open boundary conditions and other bath-coupling geometries, and (iii) provide a comparison to time-evolving block decimation. While we find that nonintegrability plays a minor role, the choice of the specific boundary conditions can be crucial, due to potentially nondecaying edge modes. Our large-scale numerical simulations suggest that a description based on closed-system correlation functions is an useful alternative to already existing state-of-the-art approaches.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2023

Diffusion constants from the recursion method

Understanding the transport behavior of quantum many-body systems constitutes an important physical endeavor, both experimentally and theoretically. While a reliable classification into normal and anomalous dynamics is known to be notoriously difficult for a given microscopic model, even the seemingly simpler evaluation of transport coefficients in diffusive systems continues to be a hard task in practice. This fact has motivated the development and application of various sophisticated methods and is also the main issue of this paper. We particularly take a barely used strategy, which is based Lanczos coefficients, and demonstrate that this strategy allows for the accurate calculation of diffusion coefficients for different paradigmatic examples, including magnetization transport in nonintegrable spin-1/2 chains and ladders as well as energy transport in the mixed-field Ising model in one dimension.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2023

Emergence of unitary symmetry of microcanonically truncated operators in chaotic quantum systems

We study statistical properties of matrix elements of observables written in the energy eigenbasis and truncated to small microcanonical windows. We present numerical evidence indicating that for all few body operators in chaotic many-body systems, truncated below certain energy scale, collective statistical properties of matrix elements exhibit emergent unitary symmetry. Namely, we show that below certain scale the spectra of the truncated operators exhibit universal behavior, matching our analytic predictions, which are numerically testable for system sizes beyond exact diagonalization. We discuss operator and system-size dependence of the energy scale of emergent unitary symmetry and put our findings in context of previous works exploring emergence of random-matrix behavior at small energy scales.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2023

Estimation of equilibration time scales from nested fraction approximations

We consider an autocorrelation function of a quantum mechanical system through the lens of the so-called recursive method, by iteratively evaluating Lanczos coefficients, or solving a system of coupled differential equations in the Mori formalism. We first show that both methods are mathematically equivalent, each offering certain practical advantages. We then propose an approximation scheme to evaluate the autocorrelation function, and use it to estimate the equilibration time $\tau$ for the observable in question. With only a handful of Lanczos coefficients as the input, this scheme yields an accurate order of magnitude estimate of $\tau$, matching state-of-the-art numerical approaches. We develop a simple numerical scheme to estimate the precision of our method. We test our approach using several numerical examples exhibiting different relaxation dynamics. Our findings provide a new practical way to quantify the equilibration time of isolated quantum systems, a question which is both crucial and notoriously difficult.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2023

Interplay of decoherence and relaxation in a two-level system interacting with an infinite-temperature reservoir

We study the time evolution of a single qubit in contact with a bath, within the framework of projection operator methods. Employing the so-called modified Redfield theory which also treats energy conserving interactions non-perturbatively, we are able to study the regime beyond the scope of the ordinary approach. Reduced equations of motion for the qubit are derived in a idealistic system where both the bath and system-bath interactions are modeled by Gaussian distributed random matrices. In the strong decoherence regime, a simple relation between the bath correlation function and the decoherence process induced by the energy conserving interaction is found. It implies that energy conserving interactions slow down the relaxation process, which leads to a zeno freezing if they are sufficiently strong. Furthermore, our results are also confirmed in numerical simulations.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2023

Spin-1/2 XXZ chain coupled to two Lindblad baths: Constructing nonequilibrium steady states from equilibrium correlation functions

State-of-the-art approaches to extract transport coefficients of many-body quantum systems broadly fall into two categories: (i) they target the linear-response regime in terms of equilibrium correlation functions of the closed system; or (ii) they consider an open-system situation typically modeled by a Lindblad equation, where a nonequilibrium steady state emerges from driving the system at its boundaries. While quantitative agreement between (i) and (ii) has been found for selected model and parameter choices, also disagreement has been pointed out in the literature. Studying magnetization transport in the spin-1/2 XXZ chain, we here demonstrate that at weak driving, the nonequilibrium steady state in an open system, including its buildup in time, can remarkably be constructed just on the basis of correlation functions in the closed system. We numerically illustrate this direct correspondence of closed-system and open-system dynamics, and show that it allows the treatment of comparatively large open systems, usually only accessible to matrix product state simulations. We also point out potential pitfalls when extracting transport coefficients from nonequilibrium steady states in finite systems.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2022

Real-time broadening of bath-induced density profiles from closed-system correlation functions

The Lindblad master equation is one of the main approaches to open quantum systems. While it has been widely applied in the context of condensed matter systems to study properties of steady states in the limit of long times, the actual route to such steady states has attracted less attention yet. Here, we investigate the nonequilibrium dynamics of spin chains with a local coupling to a single Lindblad bath and analyze the transport properties of the induced magnetization. Combining typicality and equilibration arguments with stochastic unraveling, we unveil for the case of weak driving that the dynamics in the open system can be constructed on the basis of correlation functions in the closed system, which establishes a connection between the Lindblad approach and linear response theory at finite times. In this way, we provide a particular example where closed and open approaches to quantum transport agree strictly. We demonstrate this fact numerically for the spin-1/2 XXZ chain at the isotropic point and in the easy-axis regime, where superdiffusive and diffusive scaling is observed, respectively.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗