arXiv subjects

W. Kirkby

Publications and source records attributed to W. Kirkby.

8 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2023

Excitations of a binary dipolar supersolid

We predict a rich excitation spectrum of a binary dipolar supersolid in a linear crystal geometry, where the ground state consists of two partially immiscible components with alternating, interlocking domains. We identify three Goldstone branches, each with first-sound, second-sound or spin-sound character. In analogy with a diatomic crystal, the resulting lattice has a two-domain primitive basis and we find that the crystal (first-sound-like) branch is split into optical and acoustic phonons. We also find a spin-Higgs branch that is associated with the supersolid modulation amplitude.

cond-mat.quant-gas↗

arXiv2023

Spin rotons and supersolids in binary antidipolar condensates

We present a theoretical study of a mixture of antidipolar and nondipolar Bose-Einstein condensates confined to an infinite tube. We predict the presence of a spin roton and its associated instability, which triggers a continuous unmodulated--to--supersolid phase transition. We characterize the phase diagram of the binary system, ranging from the quasi-1D to the radial Thomas-Fermi (elongated 3D) regimes. We also present the dynamic formation of supersolids following a quench from the uniform miscible phase, which maintains phase coherence across the system.

cond-mat.quant-gas↗

arXiv2022

Caustics in quantum many-body dynamics

We describe a new class of nonequilibrium quantum many-body phenomena in the form of networks of caustics that dominate the many-body wavefunction in the semiclassical regime following a sudden quench. It includes the light cone-like propagation of correlations as a particular case. Caustics are singularities formed by the birth and death of waves and form a hierarchy of universal patterns whose natural mathematical description is via catastrophe theory. Examples in classical waves range from rainbows and gravitational lensing in optics to tidal bores and rogue waves in hydrodynamics. Quantum many-body caustics are discretized by second-quantization (``quantum catastrophes'') and live in Fock space which can potentially have many dimensions. We illustrate these ideas using the Bose Hubbard dimer and trimer models which are simple enough that the caustic structure can be elucidated from first principles and yet run the full range from integrable to nonintegrable dynamics. The dimer gives rise to discretized versions of fold and cusp catastrophes whereas the trimer allows for higher catastrophes including the codimension-3 hyperbolic and elliptic umbilics which are organized by, and projections of, an 8-dimensional corank-2 catastrophe known as $X_9$. These results describe a hitherto unrecognized form of universality in quantum dynamics organized by singularities that manifest as strong fluctuations in mode population probabilities.

cond-mat.quant-gas↗

arXiv2021

False signals of chaos from quantum probes

We demonstrate that two-time correlation functions, which are generalizations of out-of-time-ordered correlators (OTOCs), can show 'false-flags' of chaos by exhibiting behaviour predicted by random matrix theory even in a system with classically regular dynamics. In particular, we analyze a system of bosons trapped in a double-well potential and probed by a quantum dot which is coupled to the bosons dispersively. This is an integrable system (considered both as separate parts and in total). Despite the continuous time evolution generated by the actual Hamiltonian, we find that the n-fold two-time correlation function for the probe describes an effective stroboscopic or Floquet dynamics whereby the bosons appear to be alternately driven by two different non-commuting Hamiltonians in a manner reminiscent of the Trotterized time evolution that occurs in digital quantum simulation. The classical limit of this effective dynamics can have a nonzero Lyapunov exponent, while the effective level statistics and return probability show traditional signatures of chaotic behaviour. In line with several other recent studies, this work highlights the fact that the behavior of OTOCs and their generalizations must be interpreted with some care.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2019

Measuring out-of-time-ordered correlation functions with a single impurity qubit in a bosonic Josephson junction

We calculate the out-of-time-ordered correlation function (OTOC) of a single impurity qubit coupled to fully a connected many-particle system such as a bosonic Josephson junction or spins with long-range interactions. In these systems the qubit OTOC can be used to detect both ground state and excited state quantum phase transitions (QPTs), making it a robust order parameter that is considerably more sensitive than the standard one-body correlation function. Finite size scaling exponents for an $N$ body system can also be accurately extracted from the long-time OTOC dynamics, however, for short times there is a discrepancy due to the fact that the qubit has not had enough time to couple to the larger system. Our results show that the OTOC of even the smallest probe is enough to diagnose a QPT in fully connected models but, like a continuous measurement, can still cause a backaction effect which leads to weakly chaotic dynamics and gradual information scrambling.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2019

Quantum caustics and the hierarchy of light cones in quenched spin chains

We show that the light cone-like structures that form in spin chains after a quench are quantum caustics. Their natural description is in terms of catastrophe theory and this implies: 1) a hierarchy of light cone structures corresponding to the different catastrophes; 2) dressing by characteristic wave functions that obey scaling laws determined by the Arnol'd and Berry indices; 3) a network of vortex-antivortex pairs in space-time inside the cone. We illustrate the theory by giving explicit calculations for the transverse field Ising model and the XY model, finding fold catastrophes dressed by Airy functions and cusp catastrophes dressed by Pearcey functions; multisite correlation functions are described by higher catastrophes such as the hyperbolic umbilic. Furthermore, we find that the vortex pairs created inside the cone are sensitive to phase transitions in these spin models with their rate of production being determined by the dynamical critical exponent. More broadly, this work illustrates how catastrophe theory can be applied to singularities in quantum fields.

cond-mat.quant-gas↗

arXiv2015

Testing the nonlocal kinetic energy functional of an inhomogeneous, two-dimensional degenerate Fermi gas within the average density approximation

In a recent paper [Phys.~Rev.~A {\bf 89}, 022503 (2014)], the average density approximation (ADA) was implemented to develop a parameter-free, nonlocal kinetic energy functional to be used in the orbital-free density-functional theory of an inhomogenous, two-dimensional (2D), Fermi gas. In this work, we provide a detailed comparison of self-consistent calculations within the ADA with the exact results of the Kohn-Sham density-functional theory, and the elementary Thomas-Fermi (TF) approximation. We demonstrate that the ADA for the 2D kinetic energy functional works very well under a wide variety of confinement potentials, even for relatively small particle numbers. Remarkably, the TF approximation for the kinetic energy functional, {\em without any gradient corrections}, also yields good agreement with the exact kinetic energy for all confining potentials considered, although at the expense of the spatial and kinetic energy densities exhibiting poor point-wise agreement, particularly near the TF radius. Our findings illustrate that the ADA kinetic energy functional yields accurate results for {\em both} the local and global equilibrium properties of an inhomogeneous 2D Fermi gas, without the need for any fitting parameters.

cond-mat.quant-gas↗

arXiv2015

Density-functional theory for the crystalline phases of a two-dimensional dipolar Fermi gas

Density-functional theory is utilized to investigate the zero-temperature transition from a Fermi liquid to an inhomogeneous stripe, or Wigner crystal phase, predicted to occur in a one-component, spin-polarized, two-dimensional dipolar Fermi gas. Correlations are treated semi-exactly within the local-density approximation using an empirical fit to Quantum Monte Carlo data. We find that the inclusion of the nonlocal contribution to the Hartree-Fock energy is crucial for the onset of an instability to an inhomogeneous density distribution. Our density-functional theory supports a transition to both a one-dimensional stripe phase, and a triangular Wigner crystal. However, we find that there is an instability first to the stripe phase, followed by a transition to the Wigner crystal at higher coupling.

cond-mat.quant-gas↗