arXiv subjects

Rahul Nandkishore

Publications and source records attributed to Rahul Nandkishore.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Quantum R\'enyi-Jarzynski Equality

The Jarzynski equality provides a strict link between nonequilibrium work and equilibrium free energy changes. Its typical quantum formulations, however, rely on measurement protocols that destroy coherence. In this Letter, we use the resource-theoretic approach to derive a non-destructive quantum Jarzynski equality conditioned on the outcomes of an arbitrary bath observable. This yields the R\'enyi-Jarzynski equality, which quantifies a finite bath's drift from equilibrium under a non-adiabatic drive via the R\'enyi $k$-divergence. We further demonstrate that the R\'enyi-Jarzynski equality provides a tunable cost function for quantum optimal control problems where minimizing bath drift is desired, such as state preparation and gate design, enabling the minimization of cross-talk in finite quantum systems. Our toy model exhibits a transition between competing minima for some critical value of $k$, illustrating how the R\'enyi order tunes sensitivity to different regions of a bath distribution. Strikingly, when drive parameters vary across bath energy levels, minimizing bath drift requires generating system-bath entanglement.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2026

Quantum Fragmentation

We introduce a systematic protocol for constructing quantum Hilbert-space-fragmented Hamiltonians, whose Krylov-sector structure, unlike in classically fragmented models, can be fully resolved only in an entangled basis. The protocol takes as input a classically fragmented model and uses a Rokhsar-Kivelson type construction to promote it to a quantum fragmented model. Notably, the procedure also works with non-fragmented inputs (such as Ising models). We explain how the Krylov sectors of the resulting quantum fragmented model may be labeled and counted in one dimension, and outline experimentally accessible verification of quantum fragmentation, assuming the ability to prepare specific initial states and perform tomography on reduced density matrices. We further analyze the entanglement structure of the entangled basis underlying quantum fragmentation, which sharply distinguishes it from both classical fragmentation and the trivial "fragmentation" of generic Hamiltonians in their eigenbasis. We also extend the construction to higher dimensions, with an explicit proof of principle example in two dimensions. We expect these results to open a new route to the systematic exploration of quantum fragmentation.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2026

Fingerprinting fractons with pump-probe spectroscopy

We demonstrate how pump-probe techniques enable specific spectroscopic diagnostics of fracton phases of matter by studying lineon-planon braiding in the paradigmatic X-cube model. Our discussion builds on previous works probing anyonic exchange statistics in conventional spin liquids, but the extension to fracton phases reveals qualitatively new phenomena due to the restricted mobility of fractionalized excitations. A key feature is that nearby planons can form an emergent bound state by accessing different planes via alternative pairing configurations. We show that this bound state qualitatively modifies the long-time linear and nonlinear responses, leading to an asymptotic linear-in-$t$ behavior for the pump-probe signal $\chi_\mathit{ZZX}$. By contrast, swapping the pump and probe polarizations produces a nonlinear response $\chi_\mathit{XXZ}$ that is asymptotically $t$-independent. This asymmetry reflects the fact that the two species of fractionalized excitations live in different spatial dimensions. Thus, the pump-probe signals studied here are sensitive to (i) nontrivial braiding statistics in three dimensions, (ii) the existence of bound states among fractionalized excitations, and (iii) the one-dimensional mobility of lineons. Our results therefore provide spectroscopic signatures that distinguish fracton phases from conventional topologically ordered spin liquids.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2026

Hidden Density-Wave Instability in the Trimer Ruthenate Ba$_4$Ru$_3$O$_{10}$

We report a hidden density-wave instability in the trimer-based ruthenate Ba4Ru3O10, previously regarded as a pure antiferromagnet with a phase transition at TA=100 K. This transition is manifested in lattice parameters, transport, thermodynamics, and magnetic susceptibility, yet remains remarkably insensitive to magnetic fields up to at least 14 T, indicating an electronically driven reconstruction. At much lower temperatures T*= 20 K, charge transport becomes strongly nonlinear, exhibiting distinct depinning thresholds, negative differential resistance, pronounced current- and frequency-dependence, and slow collective dynamics in the Hertz range. While each feature is characteristic of density-wave transport, their simultaneous occurrence in an antiferromagnetic oxide is unprecedented. All nonlinear signatures vanish upon only 3% Ir substitution, which preserves the crystal structure and insulating state, ruling out Joule heating or extrinsic artifacts. The wide separation between the electronic reconstruction at TA and the emergence of nonlinear dynamics at T* identifies Ba4Ru3O10 as a rare correlated system hosting a strongly pinned collective electronic state intertwined with antiferromagnetism.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2025

Profusion of Symmetry-Protected Qubits from Stable Ergodicity Breaking

We show how combining a discrete symmetry with topological Hilbert space fragmentation can give rise to exponentially many topologically stable qubits protected by a single discrete symmetry. We illustrate this explicitly with the example of the $\mathsf{CZ}_p$ model, where the encoded qubits are stable to arbitrary symmetry-respecting perturbations for parametrically long times, substantially enhancing the robustness of a recently proposed construction based on nontopological fragmentation. In this model, the encoded qubits naturally come in pairs for which a universal set of transversal logical gates can be performed, ruling out (by the Eastin-Knill theorem) the possibility of using them for quantum error correction. We also comment on the combination of symmetry enrichment and topological fragmentation more generally, and the implications for use of systems exhibiting Hilbert space fragmentation as quantum memories.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2025

Many-body contextuality and self-testing quantum matter via nonlocal games

Contextuality is arguably the fundamental property that makes quantum mechanics different from classical physics. It is responsible for quantum computational speedups in both magic-state-injection-based and measurement-based models of computation, and can be directly probed in a many-body setting by multiplayer nonlocal quantum games. Here, we discuss a family of games that can be won with certainty when performing single-site Pauli measurements on a state that is a codeword of a Calderbank-Shor-Steane (CSS) error-correcting quantum code. We show that these games require deterministic computation of a code-dependent Boolean function, and that the classical probability of success is upper bounded by a generalized notion of nonlinearity/nonquadraticity. This success probability quantifies the state's contextuality, and is computed via the function's (generalized) Walsh-Hadamard spectrum. To calculate this, we introduce an efficient, many-body-physics-inspired method that involves identifying the symmetries of an auxiliary hypergraph state. We compute the classical probability of success for several paradigmatic CSS codes and relate it to both classical statistical mechanics models and to strange correlators of symmetry-protected topological states. We also consider CSS submeasurement games, which can only be won with certainty by sharing the appropriate codeword up to local isometries. These games therefore enable self-testing, which we illustrate explicitly for the 2D toric code. We also discuss how submeasurement games enable an extensive notion of contextuality in many-body states.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2025

Measuring intrinsic relaxation rates in superconductors using nonlinear response

We discuss intrinsic relaxation rates in superconductors, and how they may be measured using non-linear optical (terahertz) response. We consider both $s$ and $d$-wave superconductors, both with and without a phenomenological (energy dependent) damping. Intrinsic relaxation rates of interest include the Higgs mode decay rate, the quasiparticle redistribution rate ($1/T_1$) and the quasiparticle dephasing rate ($1/T_2$), where the latter two rates are zero in the pure BCS model, but non-zero in the presence of damping. Using the Anderson pseudospin formalism, we illustrate how these intrinsic relaxation rates are related to measurable quantities such as the time-dependent gap function and the non-linear current (a.k.a. third harmonic generation). Hence, we show how intrinsic relaxation rates may be experimentally extracted and discuss what one may thereby learn about the underlying damping. We also discuss the effects of polarization control (viz. non-linear response to light polarized in different directions), which offers a useful experimental knob, especially for $d$-wave superconductors, enabling selective excitation of modes in different irreducible representations (and readout of their corresponding relaxation rates).

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2025

Emergent Inductance from Chiral Orbital Currents in a Bulk Ferrimagnet

We report the discovery of a new form of inductance in the bulk ferrimagnet Mn3Si2Te6, which features strong spin-orbit coupling, large magnetic anisotropy, and pronounced magnetoelastic interactions. Below its Curie temperature, Mn3Si2Te6 hosts chiral orbital currents (COC) that circulate within the crystal lattice and give rise to collective electronic behavior [1]. By applying a magnetic field along the hard c axis and driving the system with low-frequency currents, we uncover a giant inductive response up to millihenry scale, originating from first-order reconfigurations of COC domains. These domains act as coherent mesoscopic inductive elements that resist reversal upon current reduction, producing a large electromotive force and sharply increasing voltage. This emergent inductance defies classical models, occurs without superconductivity or engineered nanostructures, and opens a new frontier in orbital-based quantum functionality and device concepts.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2025

Strong Hilbert space fragmentation and fractons from subsystem and higher-form symmetries

We introduce a new route to Hilbert space fragmentation in high dimensions leveraging the group-word formalism. We show that taking strongly fragmented models in one dimension and "lifting" to higher dimensions using subsystem symmetries can yield strongly fragmented dynamics in higher dimensions, with subdimensional (e.g., lineonic) excitations. This provides a new route to higher-dimensional strong fragmentation, and also a new route to fractonic behavior. Meanwhile, lifting one-dimensional strongly fragmented models to higher dimensions using higher-form symmetries yields models with topologically robust weak fragmentation. In three or more spatial dimensions, one can also "mix and match" subsystem and higher-form symmetries, leading to canonical fracton models such as X-cube. We speculate that this approach could also yield a new route to non-Abelian fractons. These constructions unify a number of phenomena that have been discussed in the literature, as well as furnishing models with novel properties.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2024

Braiding for the win: Harnessing braiding statistics in topological states to win quantum games

Nonlocal quantum games provide proof of principle that quantum resources can confer advantage at certain tasks. They also provide a compelling way to explore the computational utility of phases of matter on quantum hardware. In a recent manuscript [Hart et al., arXiv:2403.04829] we demonstrated that a toric code resource state conferred advantage at a certain nonlocal game, which remained robust to small deformations of the resource state. In this manuscript we demonstrate that this robust advantage is a generic property of resource states drawn from topological or fracton ordered phases of quantum matter. To this end, we illustrate how several other states from paradigmatic topological and fracton ordered phases can function as resources for suitably defined nonlocal games, notably the three-dimensional toric-code phase, the X-cube fracton phase, and the double-semion phase. The key in every case is to design a nonlocal game that harnesses the characteristic braiding processes of a quantum phase as a source of contextuality. We unify the strategies that take advantage of mutual statistics by relating the operators to be measured to order and disorder parameters of an underlying generalized symmetry-breaking phase transition. Finally, we massively generalize the family of games that admit perfect strategies when codewords of homological quantum error-correcting codes are used as resources.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2024

Many-body quantum catalysts for transforming between phases of matter

A catalyst is a substance that enables otherwise impossible transformations between states of a system, without being consumed in the process. In this work, we apply the notion of catalysts to many-body quantum physics. In particular, we construct catalysts that enable transformations between different symmetry-protected topological (SPT) phases of matter using symmetric finite-depth quantum circuits. We discover a wide variety of catalysts, including GHZ-like states which spontaneously break the symmetry, gapless states with critical correlations, topological orders with symmetry fractionalization, and spin-glass states. These catalysts are all united under a single framework which has close connections to the theory of quantum anomalies, and we use this connection to put strong constraints on possible pure- and mixed-state catalysts. We also show how the catalyst approach leads to new insights into the structure of certain phases of matter, and to new methods to efficiently prepare SPT phases with long-range interactions or projective measurements.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2024

Towards absolutely stable ergodicity breaking in two and three dimensions

We propose new physically reasonable systems capable of avoiding ergodicity at infinite time in the thermodynamic limit, even with generic perturbations and when coupled to a heat bath. In two dimensions, the rainbow loop soup has (stretched) exponentially numerous absolutely stable nonergodic states with diverging energy but vanishing energy density. In three dimensions the rainbow membrane soup has (stretched) exponentially numerous nonergodic states with diverging energy barriers, leading to infinite-time robust ergodicity breaking that even survives coupling to a nonzero temperature heat bath. We describe our results in the language of exact emergent symmetries and demonstrate how the systems avoid common instabilities. Our construction naturally connects to quantum dimer models, topologically ordered systems, the group word construction, and Hamiltonians whose low-energy eigenstates exhibit anomalous entanglement entropy.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2024

Exact analytic toolbox for quantum dynamics with tunable noise strength

We introduce a framework that allows for the exact analytic treatment of quantum dynamics subject to coherent noise. The noise is modeled via unitary evolution under a Hamiltonian drawn from a random-matrix ensemble for arbitrary Hilbert-space dimension $N$. While the methods we develop apply to generic such ensembles with a notion of rotation invariance, we focus largely on the Gaussian unitary ensemble (GUE). Averaging over the ensemble of ''noisy'' Hamiltonians produces an effective quantum channel, the properties of which are analytically calculable and determined by the spectral form factors of the relevant ensemble. We compute spectral form factors of the GUE exactly for any finite $N$, along with the corresponding GUE quantum channel, and its variance. Key advantages of our approach include the ability to access exact analytic results for any $N$ and the ability to tune to the noise-free limit (in contrast, e.g., to the Haar ensemble), and analytic access to moments beyond the variance. We also highlight some unusual features of the GUE channel, including the nonmonotonicity of the coefficients of various operators as a function of noise strength and the failure to saturate the Haar-random limit, even with infinite noise strength.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2024

Eigenstate localization in a many-body quantum system

We prove the existence of extensive many-body Hamiltonians with few-body interactions and a many-body mobility edge: all eigenstates below a nonzero energy density are localized in an exponentially small fraction of "energetically allowed configurations" within Hilbert space. Our construction is based on quantum perturbations to a classical low-density parity check code. In principle, it is possible to detect this eigenstate localization by measuring few-body correlation functions in efficiently preparable mixed states.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2024

Interaction of Magnetic Fields with Spinons in a Fractionalized State

The 4d-electron trimer lattice exhibits either a quantum spin liquid (QSL) or a heavy-fermion strange metal (HFSM) phase, depending on Nb content. In the QSL state, itinerant spinons act as effective heat carriers, enhancing thermal conductivity. Strikingly, applying a magnetic field up to 14 T causes an abrupt increase in heat capacity by as much as 5000% below 150 mK, disrupting the linear temperature dependence characteristic of both phases. Meanwhile, AC magnetic susceptibility and electrical resistivity remain nearly unchanged, while thermal conductivity is suppressed by up to 40% below 4 K. These observations suggest that spinons, though charge-neutral, are highly sensitive to magnetic fields at low temperatures. We propose that the field induces Anderson localization of spinons, leading to emergent non-magnetic two-level systems that account for the rapid rise in heat capacity. These findings uncover a previously unexplored regime of spinon dynamics, governed by field-induced localization and distinct from conventional magnetic or transport signatures. Comments: To appear in npj Quantum Materials.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2024

Robust Hilbert space fragmentation in group-valued loop models

We introduce a large class of models exhibiting robust ergodicity breaking in quantum dynamics. Our work is inspired by recent discussions of "topologically robust Hilbert space fragmentation," but massively generalizes in two directions: firstly from states describable as "loop-soups" to a broader class of states reminiscent of string-nets and sponges, and secondly from models restricted to square or cubic lattices, to models defined on arbitrary lattices (and even arbitrary graphs without translation invariance). Our constructions leverage a recently proposed group-theory framework [PRX 14, 021034 (2024)], and identify a host of new phenomena arising from the interplay of "group-model dynamics" and lattice structure. We make crisp connections to gauge theories, and our construction generalizes Kitaev's quantum double to infinite groups.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2024

Transition between heavy-fermion strange metal and quantum spin liquid in a 4d-electron trimer lattice

We present experimental evidence that a heavy Fermi surface consisting of itinerant, charge-neutral spinons underpins both heavy-fermion-strange-metal (without f electrons) and quantum-spin-liquid states in the 4d-electron trimer lattice, Ba4Nb1-xRu3+xO12 (|x| < 0.20). These two exotic states both exhibit an extraordinarily large entropy, a linear heat capacity extending into the milli-Kelvin regime, a linear thermal conductivity at low temperatures, and separation of charges and spins. Furthermore, the insulating spin liquid is a much better thermal conductor than the heavy-fermion-strange-metal that separately is observed to strongly violate the Wiedemann-Franz law. We propose that at the heart of this 4d system is a universal, heavy spinon Fermi surface that provides a unified framework for explaining the exotic phenomena observed throughout the entire series. The control of such exotic ground states provided by variable Nb concentration offers a new paradigm for studies of correlated quantum matter.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2024

Playing nonlocal games across a topological phase transition on a quantum computer

Many-body quantum games provide a natural perspective on phases of matter in quantum hardware, crisply relating the quantum correlations inherent in phases of matter to the securing of quantum advantage at a device-oriented task. In this paper we introduce a family of multiplayer quantum games for which topologically ordered phases of matter are a resource yielding quantum advantage. Unlike previous examples, quantum advantage persists away from the exactly solvable point and is robust to arbitrary local perturbations, irrespective of system size. We demonstrate this robustness experimentally on Quantinuum's H1-1 quantum computer by playing the game with a continuous family of randomly deformed toric code states that can be created with constant-depth circuits leveraging mid-circuit measurements and unitary feedback. We are thus able to tune through a topological phase transition - witnessed by the loss of robust quantum advantage - on currently available quantum hardware. This behavior is contrasted with an analogous family of deformed GHZ states, for which arbitrarily weak local perturbations destroy quantum advantage in the thermodynamic limit. Finally, we discuss a topological interpretation of the game, which leads to a natural generalization involving an arbitrary number of players.

quant-ph↗