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Tobias Graß

Publications and source records attributed to Tobias Graß.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Contemporary tensor network approaches to gapless and topological phases in an extended Bose-Hubbard ladder

The development of numerically efficient computational methods has facilitated in depth studies of various correlated phases of matter including critical and topological phases. A quantum Monte-Carlo study of an extended Bose-Hubbard ladder has recently been used to identify an exotic phase with hidden order, where superfluid correlations coexist with string order, dubbed a Haldane superfluid (HSF). However, finite-size methods can struggle to uniquely determine the boundaries of quasi-long-range ordered states with nonlocal, e.g. string-like, correlations. In the present Letter, we revisit the HSF scenario using tensor network algorithms specialized for finite/infinite (quasi-)1D systems, \textit{i.e.} the well-governed finite-size density matrix renormalization group (DMRG), and the state-of-the-art infinite-size variational uniform matrix product state (VUMPS) methods. While DMRG results extrapolated to the thermodynamic limit are compatible with a putative HSF, the results from the VUMPS calculations provide sharper phase boundaries that leave no room for such a topological superfluid. Our results demonstrate the crucial advantage of the VUMPS in characterizing topological and critical interacting phases providing the precise phase boundaries.

cond-mat.quant-gas↗

Competing order in two-band Bose-Hubbard chains with extended-range interactions

Motivated by the recent progress in realizing and controlling extended Bose-Hubbard systems using excitonic or atomic devices, the present Letter theoretically investigates the case of a two-band Bose-Hubbard chain with nearest-neighbor interactions. Specifically, this study concentrates on the scenario where, due to the interactions, one band supports a density wave phase, i.e. a correlated insulating phase with spontaneous breaking of translational symmetry in the lattice, while the other band supports superfluid behavior. Using the density matrix renormalization group method, we show that supersolid order can emerge from such a combination, that is, an elusive quantum state that combines crystalline order with long-range phase coherence. Depending on the filling of the bands and the interband interaction strength, the supersolid phase competes with phase-separation, superfluid order, or Mott insulating density-wave order. As a possible setup to observe supersolidity, we propose the combination of a lower band supporting density-wave order and a thermally excited band that supports superfluidity due to weaker lattice confinement.

cond-mat.quant-gas↗

Observing quantum many-body scars in random quantum circuits

The Schwinger model describes quantum electrodynamics in 1+1-dimensions, it is a prototype for quantum chromodynamics, and its lattice version allows for a quantum link model description that can be simulated using modern quantum devices. In this work, we devise quantum simulations to investigate the dynamics of this model in its low dimensional form, where the gauge field degrees of freedom are described by spin 1/2 operators. We apply trotterization to write quantum circuits that effectively generate the evolution under the Schwinger model Hamiltonian. We consider both sequential circuits, with a fixed gate sequence, and randomized ones. Utilizing the correspondence between the Schwinger model and the PXP model, known for its quantum scars, we investigate the presence of quantum scar states in the Schwinger model by identifying states exhibiting extended thermalization times in our circuit evolutions. Our comparison of sequential and randomized circuit dynamics shows that the non-thermal sector of the Hilbert space, including the scars, are more sensitive to randomization.

quant-ph↗

Quantum Random Number Generators : Benchmarking and Challenges

We discuss the current state of the art of Quantum Random Number Generators (QRNG) and their possible applications in the search for quantum advantages. To this aim, we first discuss a possible way of benchmarking QRNG by applying them to the computation of complicated and hard to realize classical simulations, such as critical dynamics in two-dimensional Ising lattices. These are performed with the help of computing devices based on field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) or graphic processing units (GPUs). The results obtained for QRNG are compared with those obtained by classical pseudo-random number generators (PRNG) of various qualities. Monte Carlo simulations of critical dynamics in moderate lattice sizes (128$\times$128) start to be sensitive to the correlations present in pseudo-random numbers sequences, allowing us to detect them. By comparing our analysis with that of Ref. [PRE {\bf 93}, 022113 (2016)], we estimate the requirements for QRNGs in terms of speed, rapidity of access, and efficiency to achieve the objective of quantum advantage with respect to the best PRNGs. We discuss the technical challenges associated with this objective.

quant-ph↗

Quantum annealing sampling with a bias field

The presence of a bias field, encoding some information about the target state, can enhance the performance of quantum optimization methods. Here we investigate the effect of such a bias field on the outcome of quantum annealing sampling, at the example of the exact cover problem. The sampling is carried out on a D-Wave machine, and different bias configurations are benchmarked against the unbiased sampling procedure. It is found that the biased annealing algorithm works particularly well for larger problem sizes, where the Hamming distance between bias and target configuration becomes less important. This work motivates future research efforts for finding good bias configurations, either on the quantum machine itself, or in a hybrid fashion via classical algorithms.

quant-ph↗

Preparation of the 1/2-Laughlin state with atoms in a rotating trap

Fractional quantum Hall systems are among the most exciting strongly correlated systems. Accessing them microscopically via quantum simulations with ultracold atoms would be an important achievement toward a better understanding of this strongly correlated state of matter. A promising approach is to confine a small number of bosonic atoms in a quasi-two-dimensional rotating trap, which mimics the magnetic field. For rotation frequencies close to the in-plane trapping frequency, the ground state is predicted to be a bosonic analog of the Laughlin state. Here, we study the problem of the adiabatic preparation of the Laughlin state by ramping the rotation frequency and controlling the ellipticity of the trapping potential. By employing adapted ramping speeds for rotation frequency and ellipticity, and large trap deformations, we improve the preparation time for high-fidelity Laughlin states by a factor of ten in comparison to previous studies. With this improvement of the adiabatic protocol the Laughlin state can be prepared with current experimental technology.

cond-mat.quant-gas↗

Detecting Majorana Zero Modes via Strong Field Dynamics

We propose a protocol to detect topological phase transitions of one-dimensional $p$-wave superconductors from their harmonic emission spectrum in strong fields. Specifically, we identify spectral features due to radiating edge modes, which characterize the spectrum and the density of states in the topological phase, and which are absent in the trivial phase. These features allow us to define an order parameter, obtained from emission measurements, that unambiguously differentiates between the two phases. Local probing provides insight to the localized and topologically protected nature of the modes. The presented results establish that high harmonic spectroscopy can be used as a novel all-optical tool for the detection of Majorana zero modes.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

Two-dimensional excitons from twisted light and the fate of the photon's orbital angular momentum

As the bound state of two oppositely charged particles, excitons emerge from optically excited semiconductors as the electronic analogue of a hydrogen atom. In the two-dimensional (2D) case, realized either in quantum well systems or truly 2D materials such as transition metal dichalcogenides, the relative motion of an exciton is described by two quantum numbers: the principal quantum number $n$, and a quantum number $j$ for the angular momentum along the perpendicular axis. Conservation of angular momentum demands that only the $j=0$ states of the excitons are optically active in a system illuminated by plane waves. Here we consider the case for spatially structured light sources, specifically for twisted light beams with non-zero orbital angular momentum per photon. Under the so-called dipole approximation where the spatial variations of the light source occur on length scales much larger than the size of the semiconductor's unit cell, we show that the photon (linear and/or angular) momentum is coupled to the center-of-mass (linear and/or angular) momentum of the exciton. Our study establishes that the selection rule for the internal states of the exciton, and thus the exciton spectrum, is independent from the spatial structure of the light source.

physics.optics↗

High harmonic spectroscopy of quantum phase transitions in a high-T$_c$ superconductor

We report on the new non--linear optical signatures of quantum phase transitions in the high-temperature superconductor YBCO, observed through high harmonic generation. While the linear optical response of the material is largely unchanged when cooling across the phase transitions, the nonlinear optical response sensitively imprints two critical points, one at the critical temperature of the cuprate with the exponential growth of the surface harmonic yield in the superconducting phase, and another critical point, which marks the transition from strange metal to pseudo gap phase. To reveal the underlying microscopic quantum dynamics, a novel strong-field quasi-Hubbard model was developed, which describes the measured optical response dependent on the formation of Cooper pairs. Further, the new theory provides insight into the carrier scattering dynamics and allows to differentiate between the superconducting, pseudo gap, and strange metal phases. The direct connection between non--linear optical response and microscopic dynamics provides a powerful new methodology to study quantum phase transitions in correlated materials. Further implications are light-wave control over intricate quantum phases, light-matter hybrids, and application for optical quantum computing.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

Engineering an Effective Three-spin Hamiltonian in Trapped-ion Systems for Applications in Quantum Simulation

Trapped-ion quantum simulators, in analog and digital modes, are considered a primary candidate to achieve quantum advantage in quantum simulation and quantum computation. The underlying controlled ion-laser interactions induce all-to-all two-spin interactions via the collective modes of motion through Cirac-Zoller or Molmer-Sorensen schemes, leading to effective two-spin Hamiltonians, as well as two-qubit entangling gates. In this work, the Molmer-Sorensen scheme is extended to induce three-spin interactions via tailored first- and second-order spin-motion couplings. The scheme enables engineering single-, two-, and three-spin interactions, and can be tuned via an enhanced protocol to simulate purely three-spin dynamics. Analytical results for the effective evolution are presented, along with detailed numerical simulations of the full dynamics to support the accuracy and feasibility of the proposed scheme for near-term applications. With a focus on quantum simulation, the advantage of a direct analog implementation of three-spin dynamics is demonstrated via the example of matter-gauge interactions in the U(1) lattice gauge theory within the quantum link model. The mapping of degrees of freedom and strategies for scaling the three-spin scheme to larger systems, are detailed, along with a discussion of the expected outcome of the simulation of the quantum link model given realistic fidelities in the upcoming experiments. The applications of the three-spin scheme go beyond the lattice gauge theory example studied here and include studies of static and dynamical phase diagrams of strongly interacting condensed-matter systems modeled by two- and three-spin Hamiltonians.

quant-ph↗

Phonon-induced pairing in quantum dot quantum simulator

Quantum simulations can provide new insights into the physics of strongly correlated electronic systems. A well studied system, but still open in many regards, is the Hubbard-Holstein Hamiltonian, where electronic repulsion is in competition with attraction generated by the electron-phonon coupling. In this context we study the phase diagram of four quantum dots in a suspended carbon nanotube and coupled to its flexural degrees of freedom. The system is described by a Hamiltonian of the Hubbard-Holstein class, where electrons on different sites interact with the same phonon. We find that the system presents a transition from the Mott insulating state to a polaronic state, with the appearance of pairing correlations and the breaking of the translational symmetry. Our study shows that this system thus constitutes a relevant example of a correlated system that could be studied by experimental realization.

cond-mat.str-el↗

Tracing non-Abelian anyons via impurity particles

Non-Abelian excitations are an interesting feature of many fractional quantum Hall phases, including those phases described by the Moore-Read (or Pfaffian) wave function. However, the detection of the non-Abelian quasiparticles is challenging. Here, we consider a system described by the Moore-Read wave function, and assume that impurity particles bind to its quasiholes. Then, the angular momentum of the impurities, reflected also by the impurity density, provides a useful witness of the physics of the non-Abelian excitations. By demanding that the impurities are constrained to the lowest Landau level, we are able to write down the corresponding many-body wave function describing both the Moore-Read liquid and the impurities. Through Monte Carlo sampling we determine the impurity angular momentum, and we show that it suggests a quantum-statistical parameter $α= aν-b +P/2$ for the quasiholes, where $α$ ranges from $0$ for bosons to $1$ for fermions. A reasonable agreement with the Monte Carlo results is obtained for $a=1/4$, $b=1/8$ and $P=0,1$ depending on the parity of the particle number in the Moore-Read liquid. This parity-dependence of the angular momentum serves as an unambiguous demonstration of the non-Abelian nature of the excitations. In addition to the studies of excitations in the Moore-Read liquid, we also apply our scheme to Laughlin liquids, for which we focus on interacting bosonic impurities. With this, the impurities themselves form Laughlin states, which allows for a study of hierarchical fractional quantum Hall states.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

Fractional angular momentum and anyon statistics of impurities in Laughlin liquids

The elementary excitations of a fractional quantum Hall liquid are quasiparticles or quasiholes which are neither bosons nor fermions, but so-called anyons. Here we study impurity particles immersed in a quantum Hall liquid which bind to the quasiholes via repulsive interactions with the liquid. We show that the angular momentum of an impurity is given by the multiple of a fractional "quantum" of angular momentum, and can directly be observed from the impurity density. In a system with several impurities bound to quasiholes, their total angular momentum interpolates between the values for free fermions and for free bosons. This interpolation is characterized by the fractional statistical parameter of the anyons which is typically defined via their braiding behavior.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

Optical excitations in compressible and incompressible two-dimensional electron liquids

Optically generated electron-hole pairs can probe strongly correlated electronic matter, or, by forming exciton-polaritons within an optical cavity, give rise to photonic nonlinearities. The present paper theoretically studies the properties of electron-hole pairs in a two-dimensional electron liquid in the fractional quantum Hall regime. In particular, we quantify the effective interactions between optical excitations by numerically evaluating the system's energy spectrum under the assumption of full spin and Landau level polarization. Optically most active are those pair excitations which do not modify the correlations of the electron liquid, also known as multiplicative states. In the case of spatial separation of electrons and holes, these excitations interact repulsively with each other. However, when the electron liquid is compressible, other non-multiplicative configurations occur at lower energies. The interactions of such dark excitations strongly depend on the liquid, and can also become attractive. For the case of a single excitation, we also study the effect of Landau level mixing in the valence band which can dramatically change the effective mass of an exciton.

cond-mat.str-el↗

Quantum annealing with longitudinal bias fields

Quantum annealing aims at solving hard computational problems through adiabatic state preparation. Here, I propose to use inhomogeneous longitudinal magnetic fields to enhance the efficiency of the annealing. Such fields are able to bias the annealing dynamics into the desired solution, and in many cases, suitable field configurations can be found iteratively. Alternatively, the longitudinal fields can also be applied as an antibias which filters out unwanted contributions from the final state. This strategy is particularly well suited for instances which are difficult to solve within the standard quantum annealing approach. By numerically simulating the dynamics for small instances of the exact cover problem, the performance of these different strategies is investigated.

quant-ph↗

Excitations and correlations in the driven-dissipative Bose-Hubbard model

Using a field-theoretic approach within the Schwinger-Keldysh formalism, we study a Bose-Hubbard model in the presence of a driving field and dissipation due to one-body losses. We recover the bistability diagram from the Gross-Pitaevski equation and analyze the different phases with respect to their elementary excitations and correlations. We find the low-density solution to be subdivided into a dynamically instable, a gapped, and a gapless regime. The correlations decay exponentially, but a substantial increase of correlation length marks the regime of gapless excitations.

cond-mat.quant-gas↗

Fractional quantum Hall phases of bosons with tunable interactions: From the Laughlin liquid to a fractional Wigner crystal

Highly tunable platforms for realizing topological phases of matter are emerging from atomic and photonic systems, and offer the prospect of designing interactions between particles. The shape of the potential, besides playing an important role in the competition between different fractional quantum Hall phases, can also trigger the transition to symmetry-broken phases, or even to phases where topological and symmetry-breaking order coexist. Here, we explore the phase diagram of an interacting bosonic model in the lowest Landau level at half-filling as two-body interactions are tuned. Apart from the well-known Laughlin liquid, Wigner crystal phase, stripe, and bubble phases, we also find evidence of a phase that exhibits crystalline order at fractional filling per crystal site. The Laughlin liquid transits into this phase when pairs of bosons strongly repel each other at relative angular momentum $4\hbar$. We show that such interactions can be achieved by dressing ground-state cold atoms with multiple different-parity Rydberg states.

cond-mat.quant-gas↗

Optical control over bulk excitations in fractional quantum Hall systems

Local excitations in fractional quantum Hall systems are amongst the most intriguing objects in condensed matter, as they behave like particles of fractional charge and fractional statistics. In order to experimentally reveal these exotic properties and further to use such excitations for quantum computations, microscopic control over the excitations is necessary. Here we discuss different optical strategies to achieve such control. First, we propose that the application of a light field with non-zero orbital angular momentum can pump orbital angular momenta to electrons in a quantum Hall droplet. In analogy to Laughlin's argument, we show that this field can generate a quasihole or a quasielectron in such systems. Second, we consider an optical potential that can trap a quasihole, by repelling electrons from the region of the light beam. We simulate a moving optical field, which is able to control the position of the quasihole. This allows for imprinting the characteristic Berry phase which reflects the fractional charge of the quasihole.

cond-mat.str-el↗