arXiv subjects

Xiao-Gang Wen

Publications and source records attributed to Xiao-Gang Wen.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

arXiv2017

Classification of 2+1D topological orders and SPT orders for bosonic and fermionic systems with on-site symmetries

Gapped quantum liquids (GQL) include both topologically ordered states (with long range entanglement) and symmetry protected topological (SPT) states (with short range entanglement). In this paper, we propose a classification of 2+1D GQL for both bosonic and fermionic systems: 2+1D bosonic/fermionic GQLs with finite on-site symmetry are classified by non-degenerate unitary braided fusion categories over a symmetric fusion category (SFC) $\cal E$, abbreviated as $\text{UMTC}_{/\cal E}$, together with their modular extensions and total chiral central charges. The SFC $\cal E$ is $\text{Rep}(G)$ for bosonic symmetry $G$, or $\text{sRep}(G^f)$ for fermionic symmetry $G^f$. As a special case of the above result, we find that the modular extensions of $\text{Rep}(G)$ classify the 2+1D bosonic SPT states of symmetry $G$, while the $c=0$ modular extensions of $\text{sRep}(G^f)$ classify the 2+1D fermionic SPT states of symmetry $G^f$. Many fermionic SPT states are studied based on the constructions from free-fermion models. But it is not clear if free-fermion constructions can produce all fermionic SPT states. Our classification does not have such a drawback. We show that, for interacting 2+1D fermionic systems, there are exactly 16 superconducting phases with no symmetry and no fractional excitations (up to $E_8$ bosonic quantum Hall states). Also, there are exactly 8 $Z_2\times Z_2^f$-SPT phases, 2 $Z_8^f$-SPT phases, and so on. Besides, we show that two topological orders with identical bulk excitations and central charge always differ by the stacking of the SPT states of the same symmetry.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2016

Quantum Statistics and Spacetime Surgery

We apply the geometric-topology surgery theory on spacetime manifolds to study the constraints of quantum statistics data in 2+1 and 3+1 spacetime dimensions. First, we introduce the fusion data for worldline and worldsheet operators capable creating anyon excitations of particles and strings, well-defined in gapped states of matter with intrinsic topological orders. Second, we introduce the braiding statistics data of particles and strings, such as the geometric Berry matrices for particle-string Aharonov-Bohm and multi-loop adiabatic braiding process, encoded by submanifold linkings, in the closed spacetime 3-manifolds and 4-manifolds. Third, we derive new quantum surgery constraints analogous to Verlinde formula associating fusion and braiding statistics data via spacetime surgery, essential for defining the theory of topological orders, and potentially correlated to bootstrap boundary physics such as gapless modes, conformal field theories or quantum anomalies.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2016

Modular extensions of unitary braided fusion categories and 2+1D topological/SPT orders with symmetries

A finite bosonic or fermionic symmetry can be described uniquely by a symmetric fusion category $\mathcal{E}$. In this work, we propose that 2+1D topological/SPT orders with a fixed finite symmetry $\mathcal{E}$ are classified, up to $E_8$ quantum Hall states, by the unitary modular tensor categories $\mathcal{C}$ over $\mathcal{E}$ and the modular extensions of each $\mathcal{C}$. In the case $\mathcal{C}=\mathcal{E}$, we prove that the set $\mathcal{M}_{ext}(\mathcal{E})$ of all modular extensions of $\mathcal{E}$ has a natural structure of a finite abelian group. We also prove that the set $\mathcal{M}_{ext}(\mathcal{C})$ of all modular extensions of $\mathcal{C}$, if not empty, is equipped with a natural $\mathcal{M}_{ext}(\mathcal{E})$-action that is free and transitive. Namely, the set $\mathcal{M}_{ext}(\mathcal{C})$ is an $\mathcal{M}_{ext}(\mathcal{E})$-torsor. As special cases, we explain in details how the group $\mathcal{M}_{ext}(\mathcal{E})$ recovers the well-known group-cohomology classification of the 2+1D bosonic SPT orders and Kitaev's 16 fold ways. We also discuss briefly the behavior of the group $\mathcal{M}_{ext}(\mathcal{E})$ under the symmetry-breaking processes and its relation to Witt groups.

math.QA↗

arXiv2016

A tensor product state approach to spin-1/2 square $J_1$-$J_2$ antiferromagnetic Heisenberg model: evidence for deconfined quantum criticality

The ground state phase of spin-1/2 $J_1$-$J_2$ antiferromagnetic Heisenberg model on square lattice around the maximally frustrated regime ($J_2\sim 0.5J_1$) has been debated for decades. Here we study this model using the cluster update algorithm for tensor product states (TPSs). The ground state energies at finite sizes and in the thermodynamic limit (with finite size scaling) are in good agreement with exact diagonalization study. Through finite size scaling of the spin correlation function, we find the critical point $J_2^{c_1}=0.572(5)J_1$ and critical exponents $ν=0.50(8)$, $η_s=0.28(6)$. In the range of $0.572 < J_2/J_1 \leqslant 0.6 $ we find a paramagnetic ground state with exponentially decaying spin-spin correlation. Up to $24\times 24$ system size, we observe power law decaying dimer-dimer and plaquette-plaquette correlations with an anomalous plaquette scaling exponent $η_p=0.24(1)$ and an anomalous columnar scaling exponent $η_c=0.28(1)$ at $J_2/J_1=0.6$. These results are consistent with a potential gapless $U(1)$ spin liquid phase. However, since the $U(1)$ spin liquid is unstable due to the instanton effect, a VBS order with very small amplitude might develop in the thermodynamic limit. Thus, our numerical results strongly indicate a deconfined quantum critical point (DQCP) at $J_2^{c_1}$. Remarkably, all the observed critical exponents are consistent with the $J-Q$ model.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2016

Field theory representation of gauge-gravity symmetry-protected topological invariants, group cohomology and beyond

The challenge of identifying symmetry-protected topological states (SPTs) is due to their lack of symmetry-breaking order parameters and intrinsic topological orders. For this reason, it is impossible to formulate SPTs under Ginzburg-Landau theory or probe SPTs via fractionalized bulk excitations and topology-dependent ground state degeneracy. However, the partition functions from path integrals with various symmetry twists are the universal SPT invariants defining topological probe responses, fully characterizing SPTs. In this work, we use gauge fields to represent those symmetry twists in closed spacetimes of any dimensionality and arbitrary topology. This allows us to express the SPT invariants in terms of continuum field theory. We show that SPT invariants of pure gauge actions describe the SPTs predicted by group cohomology, while the mixed gauge-gravity actions describe the beyond-group-cohomology SPTs, recently observed by Kapustin. We find new examples of mixed gauge-gravity actions for U(1) SPTs in 4+1D via mixing the gauge first Chern class with a gravitational Chern-Simons term, or viewed as a 5+1D Wess-Zumino-Witten term with a Pontryagin class. We rule out U(1) SPTs in 3+1D mixed with a Stiefel-Whitney class. We also apply our approach to the bosonic/fermionic topological insulators protected by U(1) charge and $\mathbb{Z}_2^T$ time-reversal symmetries whose pure gauge action is the axion $θ$-term. Field theory representations of SPT invariants not only serve as tools for classifying SPTs, but also guide us in designing physical probes for them. In addition, our field theory representations are independently powerful for studying group cohomology within the mathematical context.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2015

Simple-current algebra constructions of 2+1D topological orders

Self-consistent (non-)abelian statistics in 2+1D are classified by modular tensor categories (MTC). In recent works, a simplified axiomatic approach to MTCs, based on fusion coefficients $N^{ij}_k$ and spins $s_i$, was proposed. A numerical search based on these axioms led to a list of possible (non-)abelian statistics, with rank up to $N=7$. However, there is no guarantee that all solutions to the simplified axioms are consistent and can be realised by bosonic physical systems. In this paper, we use simple-current algebra to address this issue. We explicitly construct many-body wave functions, aiming to realize the entries in the list (\ie realize their fusion coefficients $N^{ij}_k$ and spins $s_i$). We find that all entries can be constructed by simple-current algebra plus conjugation under time reversal symmetry. This supports the conjecture that simple-current algebra is a general approach that allows us to construct all (non-)abelian statistics in 2+1D. It also suggests that the simplified theory based on $(N^{ij}_k,s_i)$ is a classifying theory at least for simple bosonic 2+1D topological orders (up to invertible topological orders).

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2015

Multi-kink topological terms and charge-binding domain-wall condensation induced symmetry-protected topological states: Beyond Chern-Simons/BF theory

Quantum-disordering a discrete-symmetry breaking state by condensing domain-walls can lead to a trivial symmetric insulator state. In this work, we show that if we bind a 1D representation of the symmetry (such as a charge) to the intersection point of several domain walls, condensing such modified domain-walls can lead to a non-trivial symmetry-protected topological (SPT) state. This result is obtained by showing that the modified domain-wall condensed state has a non-trivial SPT invariant -- the symmetry-twist dependent partition function. We propose two different kinds of field theories that can describe the above mentioned SPT states. The first one is a Ginzburg-Landau-type non-linear sigma model theory, but with an additional multi-kink domain-wall topological term. Such theory has an anomalous $U^k(1)$ symmetry but an anomaly-free $Z_N^k$ symmetry. The second one is a gauge theory, which is beyond Abelian Chern-Simons/BF gauge theories. We argue that the two field theories are equivalent at low energies. After coupling to the symmetry twists, both theories produce the desired SPT invariant.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2015

Boundary-bulk relation for topological orders as the functor mapping higher categories to their centers

In this paper, we study the relation between topological orders and their gapped boundaries. We propose that the bulk for a given gapped boundary theory is unique. It is actually a consequence of a microscopic definition of a local topological order, which is a (potentially anomalous) topological order defined on an open disk. Using this uniqueness, we show that the notion of "bulk" is equivalent to the notion of center in mathematics. We achieve this by first introducing the notion of a morphism between two local topological orders of the same dimension, then proving that the bulk satisfying the same universal property as that of the center in mathematics. We propose a classification (formulated as a macroscopic definition) of $n+$1D local topological orders by unitary multi-fusion $n$-categories, and explain that the notion of a morphism between two local topological orders is compatible with that of a unitary monoidal $n$-functor in a few low dimensional cases. We also explain in some low dimensional cases that this classification is compatible with the result of "bulk = center". In the end, we explain that above boundary-bulk relation is only the first layer of a hierarchical structure which can be summarized by the functoriality of the bulk (or center). This functoriality also provides the physical meanings of some well-known mathematical results on fusion 1-categories. This work can also be viewed as the first step towards a systematic study of the category of local topological orders, and the boundary-bulk relation actually provides a useful tool for this study.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2015

A theory of 2+1D fermionic topological orders and fermionic/bosonic topological orders with symmetries

We propose that, up to invertible topological orders, 2+1D fermionic topological orders without symmetry and 2+1D fermionic/bosonic topological orders with symmetry $G$ are classified by non-degenerate unitary braided fusion categories (UBFC) over a symmetric fusion category (SFC); the SFC describes a fermionic product state without symmetry or a fermionic/bosonic product state with symmetry $G$, and the UBFC has a modular extension. We developed a simplified theory of non-degenerate UBFC over a SFC based on the fusion coefficients $N^{ij}_k$ and spins $s_i$. This allows us to obtain a list that contains all 2+1D fermionic topological orders (without symmetry). We find explicit realizations for all the fermionic topological orders in the table. For example, we find that, up to invertible $p+\hspace{1pt}\mathrm{i}\hspace{1pt} p$ fermionic topological orders, there are only four fermionic topological orders with one non-trivial topological excitation: (1) the $K={\scriptsize \begin{pmatrix} -1&0\\0&2\end{pmatrix}}$ fractional quantum Hall state, (2) a Fibonacci bosonic topological order $2^B_{14/5}$ stacking with a fermionic product state, (3) the time-reversal conjugate of the previous one, (4) a primitive fermionic topological order that has a chiral central charge $c=\frac14$, whose only topological excitation has a non-abelian statistics with a spin $s=\frac14$ and a quantum dimension $d=1+\sqrt{2}$. We also proposed a categorical way to classify 2+1D invertible fermionic topological orders using modular extensions.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2015

Fractionalized spin-wave continuum in spin liquid states on the kagome lattice

Motivated by spin-wave continuum (SWC) observed in recent neutron scattering experiments in Herbertsmithite, we use Gutzwiller-projected wave functions to study dynamic spin structure factor $S(\mathbf{q},ω)$ of spin liquid states on the kagome lattice. Spin-1 excited states in spin liquids are represented by Gutzwiller-projected two-spinon excited wave functions. We investigate three different spin liquid candidates, spinon Fermi-surface spin liquid (FSL), Dirac spin liquid (DSL) and random-flux spin liquid (RSL). FSL and RSL have low energy peaks in $S(\mathbf{q},ω)$ at $K$ points in the extended magnetic Brillouin zone, in contrast to experiments where low energy peaks are found at $M$ points. There is no obviuos contradiction between DSL and neutron scattering measurements. Besides a fractionalized spin (i.e. spin-1/2), spinons in DSL carry a fractionalized crystal momentum which is potentially detectable in SWC in the neutron scattering measurements.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2015

Environment tensor as order parameter for symmetry breaking and (symmetry-protected) topological orders

Spontaneous symmetry breaking is well understood through the classical "Mexican Hat" picture, which describes many quantum phases of matter. Recently, several new classes of quantum phases of matter, such as topological orders and symmetry protected topological (SPT) orders, were discovered. In an attempt to address the transitions between all those phases of quantum matter under the same framework, we introduced an analogous yet very simple picture for phase transitions in the context of tensor-networks. Using a very simple iteration process, we found that both symmetry breaking and some topological phase transitions (for topological orders described by gauge theory and 1D SPT orders) could be marked by a sudden change in the symmetry structure of the so-called "environment matrix". In this process, the environment matrix serves as an "order parameter" that captures patterns of entanglement in topological phases. The symmetry change in the environment matrix is very much like the symmetry breaking of conventional order parameters. We applied this method to both the transverse Ising model (1D and 2D honeycomb), spin-1 model (1D), and the Toric Code model in a magnetic field (2D honeycomb), and explored the corresponding symmetry structure changes in their environment matrices in details. With just a few variational parameters and a few minutes' run time on a laptop, we could get the corresponding phase transition points within a few percent error compared with the Quantum Monte Carlo results.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2015

Construction of bosonic symmetry-protected-trivial states and their topological invariants via $G\times SO(\infty)$ non-linear $σ$-models

It has been shown that the L-type bosonic symmetry-protected-trivial (SPT) phases with pure gauge anomalous boundary can all be realized via non-linear $σ$-models (NL$σ$Ms) of the symmetry group $G$ with various topological terms. Those SPT phases (called the pure SPT phases) can be classified by group cohomology ${\cal H}^d(G,\mathbb{R}/\mathbb{Z})$. But there are also SPT phases with mixed gauge-gravity anomalous boundary (which will be called the mixed SPT phases). Some of the mixed SPT states were also referred as the beyond-group-cohomology SPT states. In this paper, we show that those beyond-group-cohomology SPT states are actually within another type of group cohomology classification. More precisely, we show that both the pure and the mixed SPT phases can be realized by $G\times SO(\infty)$ NL$σ$Ms with various topological terms. Through the group cohomology ${\cal H}^d[G\times SO(\infty),\mathbb{R}/\mathbb{Z}]$, we find that the set of our constructed L-type SPT phases in $d$-dimensional space-time are classified by $ E^d(G)\rtimes \oplus_{k=1}^{d-1} {\cal H}^k(G,\text{iTO}_L^{d-k})\oplus {\cal H}^d(G,\mathbb{R}/\mathbb{Z}) $ where $G$ may contain time-reversal. Here $\text{iTO}_L^d$ is the set of the L-type topologically-ordered phases in $d$-dimensional space-time that have no topological excitations, and one has $\text{iTO}_L^1=\text{iTO}_L^2=\text{iTO}_L^4=\text{iTO}_L^6=0$, $\text{iTO}_L^3=\mathbb{Z}$, $\text{iTO}_L^5=\mathbb{Z}_2$, $\text{iTO}_L^7=2\mathbb{Z}$. Our construction also gives us the topological invariants that fully characterize the corresponding SPT and iTO phases. Through several examples, we show how can the universal physical properties of SPT phases be obtained from those topological invariants.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2015

A lattice non-perturbative definition of an SO(10) chiral gauge theory and its induced standard model

The standard model is a chiral gauge theory where the gauge fields couple to the right-hand and the left-hand fermions differently. The standard model is defined perturbatively and describes all elementary particles (except gravitons) very well. However, for a long time, we do not know if we can have a non-perturbative definition of standard model as a Hamiltonian quantum mechanical theory. In this paper, we propose a way to give a modified standard model (with 48 two-component Weyl fermions) a non-perturbative definition by embedding the modified standard model into a SO(10) chiral gauge theory and then putting the SO(10) chiral gauge theory on a 3D spatial lattice with a continuous time. Such a non-perturbatively defined standard model is a Hamiltonian quantum theory with a finite-dimensional Hilbert space for a finite space volume. Using the defining connection between gauge anomalies and the symmetry-protected topological orders, we show that any chiral gauge theory can be non-perturbatively defined by putting it on a lattice in the same dimension, as long as the chiral gauge theory is free of all anomalies.

hep-lat↗

arXiv2015

Gapped quantum liquids and topological order, stochastic local transformations and emergence of unitarity

In this work we present some new understanding of topological order, including three main aspects: (1) It was believed that classifying topological orders corresponds to classifying gapped quantum states. We show that such a statement is not precise. We introduce the concept of \emph{gapped quantum liquid} as a special kind of gapped quantum states that can "dissolve" any product states on additional sites. Topologically ordered states actually correspond to gapped quantum liquids with stable ground-state degeneracy. Symmetry-breaking states for on-site symmetry are also gapped quantum liquids, but with unstable ground-state degeneracy. (2) We point out that the universality classes of generalized local unitary (gLU) transformations (without any symmetry) contain both topologically ordered states and symmetry-breaking states. This allows us to use a gLU invariant -- topological entanglement entropy -- to probe the symmetry-breaking properties hidden in the exact ground state of a finite system, which does not break any symmetry. This method can probe symmetry- breaking orders even without knowing the symmetry and the associated order parameters. (3) The universality classes of topological orders and symmetry-breaking orders can be distinguished by \emph{stochastic local (SL) transformations} (i.e.\ \emph{local invertible transformations}): small SL transformations can convert the symmetry-breaking classes to the trivial class of product states with finite probability of success, while the topological-order classes are stable against any small SL transformations, demonstrating a phenomenon of emergence of unitarity. This allows us to give a new definition of long-range entanglement based on SL transformations, under which only topologically ordered states are long-range entangled.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2015

Boundary Degeneracy of Topological Order

We introduce the concept of boundary degeneracy of topologically ordered states on a compact orientable spatial manifold with boundaries, and emphasize that the boundary degeneracy provides richer information than the bulk degeneracy. Beyond the bulk-edge correspondence, we find the ground state degeneracy of the fully gapped edge modes depends on boundary gapping conditions. By associating different types of boundary gapping conditions as different ways of particle or quasiparticle condensations on the boundary, we develop an analytic theory of gapped boundaries. By Chern-Simons theory, this allows us to derive the ground state degeneracy formula in terms of boundary gapping conditions, which encodes more than the fusion algebra of fractionalized quasiparticles. We apply our theory to Kitaev's toric code and Levin-Wen string-net models. We predict that the $Z_2$ toric code and $Z_2$ double-semion model (more generally, the $Z_k$ gauge theory and the $U(1)_k \times U(1)_{-k}$ non-chiral fractional quantum Hall state at even integer $k$) can be numerically and experimentally distinguished, by measuring their boundary degeneracy on an annulus or a cylinder.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2015

A classification of 2D fermionic and bosonic topological orders

The string-net approach by Levin and Wen, and the local unitary transformation approach by Chen, Gu, and Wen, provide ways to classify topological orders with gappable edge in 2D bosonic systems. The two approaches reveal that the mathematical framework for 2+1D bosonic topological order with gappable edge is closely related to unitary fusion category theory. In this paper, we generalize these systematic descriptions of topological orders to 2D fermion systems. We find a classification of 2+1D fermionic topological orders with gappable edge in terms of the following set of data $(N^{ij}_k, F^{ij}_k, F^{ijm,αβ}_{jkn,χδ},d_i)$, that satisfy a set of non-linear algebraic equations. The exactly soluble Hamiltonians can be constructed from the above data on any lattices to realize the corresponding topological orders. When $F^{ij}_k=0$, our result recovers the previous classification of 2+1D bosonic topological orders with gappable edge.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2015

Topological degeneracy (Majorana zero-mode) and 1+1D fermionic topological order in a magnetic chain on superconductor via spontaneous Z2 symmetry breaking

We study a chain of ferromagnetic nano-particles or ferromagnetic molecule/atoms on a substrate of fully gapped superconductors. We find that under quite realistic conditions, the fermion-number-parity symmetry $Z_2^f$ can spontaneously break. In other words, such a chain can realize a 1+1D fermionic topologically ordered state and the corresponding two-fold topological degeneracy on an open chain. Such a topological degeneracy becomes the so called Majorana zero mode in the non-interacting limit. More specifically, we find that $Z_2^f$ symmetry breaking or fermionic 1+1D topological order can appear if (1) the electron hopping $t_{ij}$ between nano-particles is larger than the energy splitting $δE_{eo}$ between the ground states of even and odd electrons on a nano-particle, (2) the Josephson coupling $J_i$ between the superconducting substrate and the nano-particle is larger than or similar to $δE_{eo}$, and (3) the electron hopping amplitude $t_{ij}$ is complex, or more precisely, the phase of gauge invariant combination $J_i t_{ij}^2 J_j^*$ is not zero.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2015

Microscopic Realization of 2-Dimensional Bosonic Topological Insulators

It is well known that a Bosonic Mott insulator can be realized by condensing vortices of a bo- son condensate. Usually, a vortex becomes an anti-vortex (and vice-versa) under time reversal symmetry, and the condensation of vortices results in a trivial Mott insulator. However, if each vortex or anti-vortex interacts with a spin trapped at its core, the time reversal transformation of the composite vortex operator will contain an extra minus sign. It turns out that such a composite vortex condensed state is a bosonic topological insulator (BTI) with gapless boundary excitations protected by $U(1)\rtimes Z_2^T$ symmetry. We point out that in BTI, an external $π$ flux monodromy defect carries a Kramers doublet. We propose lattice model Hamiltonians to realize the BTI phase, which might be implemented in cold atom systems or spin-1 solid state systems.

cond-mat.str-el↗