arXiv subjects

Ying-Hai Wu

Publications and source records attributed to Ying-Hai Wu.

52 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv2017

Fractional quantum Hall states of bosons on cones

Motivated by a recent experiment which synthesizes Landau levels for photons on cones [Schine {\em et al.}, Nature 534, 671 (2016)], and more generally the interest in understanding gravitational responses of quantum Hall states, we study fractional quantum Hall states of bosons on cones. A variety of trial wave functions for conical systems are constructed and compared with exact diagonalization results. The tip of a cone is a localized geometrical defect with singular curvature which can modify the density profiles of quantum Hall states. The density profiles on cones can be used to extract some universal information about quantum Hall states. The values of certain quantities are computed numerically using the density profiles of some quantum Hall states and they agree with analytical predictions.

cond-mat.quant-gas↗

arXiv2017

Fermionic symmetry-protected topological state in strained graphene

The low-energy physics of graphene is described by relativistic Dirac fermions with spin and valley degrees of freedom. Mechanical strain can be used to create a pseudo magnetic field pointing to opposite directions in the two valleys. We study interacting electrons in graphene exposed to both an external real magnetic field and a strain-induced pseudo magnetic field. For a certain ratio between these two fields, it is proposed that a fermionic symmetry-protected topological state can be realized. The state is characterized in detail using model wave functions, Chern-Simons field theory, and numerical calculations. Our paper suggests that graphene with artificial gauge fields may host a rich set of topological states.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2017

Clean Floquet Time Crystals: Models and Realizations in Cold Atoms

Time crystals, a phase showing spontaneous breaking of time-translation symmetry, has been an intriguing subject for systems far away from equilibrium. Recent experiments found such a phase both in the presence and absence of localization, while in theories localization by disorder is usually assumed a priori. In this work, we point out that time crystals can generally exist in systems without disorder. A series of clean quasi-one-dimensional models under Floquet driving are proposed to demonstrate this unexpected result in principle. Robust time crystalline orders are found in the strongly interacting regime along with the emergent integrals of motion in the dynamical system, which can be characterized by level statistics and the out-of-time-ordered correlators. We propose two cold atom experimental schemes to realize the clean Floquet time crystals, one by making use of dipolar gases and another by synthetic dimensions.

cond-mat.quant-gas↗

arXiv2017

Non-Abelian Parton Fractional Quantum Hall Effect in Multilayer Graphene

The current proposals for producing non-Abelian anyons and Majorana particles, which are neither fermions nor bosons, are primarily based on the realization of topological superconductivity in two dimensions. We show theoretically that the unique Landau level structure of bilayer graphene provides a new possible avenue for achieving such exotic particles. Specifically, we demonstrate the feasibility of a "parton" fractional quantum Hall (FQH) state, which supports non-Abelian particles without the usual topological superconductivity. Furthermore, we advance this state as the fundamental explanation of the puzzling $1/2$ FQH effect observed in bilayer graphene [Kim {\em et al.}, Nano Lett. {\bf 15}, 7445 (2015)], and predict that it will also occur in trilayer graphene. We indicate experimental signatures that differentiate the parton state from other candidate non-Abelian FQH states and predict that a transverse electric field can induce a topological quantum phase transition between two distinct non-Abelian FQH states.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2017

The enigma of the $ν=2+\frac{3}{8}$ fractional quantum Hall effect

The fractional quantum Hall effect at $ν=2+3/8$, which has been definitively observed, is one of the last fractions for which no viable explanation has so far been demonstrated. Our detailed study suggests that it belongs to a new class of of exotic states described by the Bonderson-Slingerland wave function. Its excitations are non-Abelian anyons similar to those of the well studied Pfaffian state at 5/2, but its wave function has a more complex structure. Using the effective edge theory, we make predictions for various measurable quantities that should enable a confirmation of the underlying topological order of this state.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2016

Topological phases of two-component bosons in species-dependent artificial gauge potentials

We study bosonic atoms with two internal states in artificial gauge potentials whose strengths are different for the two components. A series of topological phases for such systems is proposed using the composite fermion theory and the parton construction. It is found in exact diagonalization that some of the proposed states may be realized for simple contact interaction between bosons. The ground states and low-energy excitations of these states are modeled using trial wave functions. The effective field theories for these states are also constructed and reveal some interesting properties.

cond-mat.quant-gas↗

arXiv2016

Role of exciton screening in the 7/3 fractional quantum Hall effect

The excitations of the 7/3 fractional Hall state, one of the most prominent states in the second Landau level, are not understood. We study the effect of screening by composite fermion excitons and find that it causes a strong renormalization at 7/3, thanks to a relatively small exciton gap and a relatively large residual interaction between composite fermions. The excitations of the 7/3 state are to be viewed as composite fermions dressed by a large exciton cloud. Their wide extent has implications for experiments as well as for analysis of finite system exact diagonalization studies.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2015

Bound states in boson impurity models

The formation of bound states involving multiple particles underlies many interesting quantum physical phenomena, such as Efimov physics or superconductivity. In this work we show the existence of an infinite number of such states for some boson impurity models. They describe free bosons coupled to an impurity and include some of the most representative models in quantum optics. We also propose a family of wavefunctions to describe the bound states and verify that it accurately characterizes all parameter regimes by comparing its predictions with exact numerical calculations for a one-dimensional tight-binding Hamiltonian. For that model, we also analyze the nature of the bound states by studying the scaling relations of physical quantities such as the ground state energy and localization length, and find a non-analytical behavior as a function of the coupling strength. Finally, we discuss how to test our theoretical predictions in experimental platforms such as photonic crystal structures and cold atoms in optical lattices.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2015

Emergent Fermi sea in a system of interacting bosons

An understanding of the possible ways in which interactions can produce fundamentally new emergent many-body states is a central problem of condensed matter physics. We ask if a Fermi sea can arise in a system of bosons subject to contact interaction. Based on exact diagonalization studies and variational wave functions, we predict that such a state is likely to occur when a system of two-component bosons in two dimensions, interacting via a species independent contact interaction, is exposed to a synthetic magnetic field of strength that corresponds to a filling factor of unity. The fermions forming the SU(2) singlet Fermi sea are bound states of bosons and quantized vortices, formed as a result of the repulsive interaction between bosons in the lowest Landau level.

cond-mat.quant-gas↗

arXiv2015

Fractional Topological Phases in Generalized Hofstadter Bands with Arbitrary Chern Numbers

We construct generalized Hofstadter models that possess "color-entangled" flat bands and study interacting many-body states in such bands. For a system with periodic boundary conditions and appropriate interactions, there exist gapped states at certain filling factors for which the ground-state degeneracy depends on the number of unit cells along one particular direction. This puzzling observation can be understood intuitively by mapping our model to a single-layer or a multilayer system for a given lattice configuration. We discuss the relation between these results and the previously proposed "topological nematic states," in which lattice dislocations have non-Abelian braiding statistics. Our study also provides a systematic way of stabilizing various fractional topological states in $C>1$ flat bands and provides some hints on how to realize such states in experiments.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2014

Theoretical investigation of edge reconstruction in the $ν$=5/2 and 7/3 fractional quantum Hall states

The edge physics of the $ν=5/2$ fractional quantum Hall state is of relevance to several recent experiments that use it as a probe to gain insight into the nature of the bulk state. We perform calculations in a semi-realistic setup with positive background charge at a distance $d$, by exact diagonalization both in the full Hilbert space (neglecting Landau level mixing) and in the restricted Pfaffian basis of edge excitations. Our principal finding is that the 5/2 edge is unstable to a reconstruction except for very small $d$. In addition, the interactions between the electrons in the second Landau level and the lowest Landau level enhance the tendency toward edge reconstruction. We identify the bosonic and fermionic modes of edge excitations and obtain their dispersions by back-calculating from the energy spectra as well as directly from appropriate trial wave functions. We find that the edge reconstruction is driven by an instability in the fermionic sector for setback distances close to the critical ones. We also study the edge of the $ν=7/3$ state and find that edge reconstruction occurs here more readily than for the $ν=1/3$ state. Our study indicates that the $ν=5/2$ and 7/3 edge states are reconstructed for all experimental systems investigated so far and thus must be taken into account when analyzing experimental results. We also consider an effective field theory to gain insight into how edge reconstruction might influence various observable quantities.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2014

Enigmatic 4/11 State: A Prototype for Unconventional Fractional Quantum Hall Effect

The origin of fractional quantum Hall effect (FQHE) at 4/11 and 5/13 has remained controversial. We make a compelling case that FQHE is possible here for fully spin polarized composite fermions, but with an unconventional underlying physics. Thanks to a rather unusual interaction between composite fermions, FQHE here results from the suppression of pairs with relative angular momentum {\em three} rather than one, confirming the exotic mechanism proposed by Wójs, Yi and Quinn [Phys. Rev. B {\bf 69}, 205322 (2004)]. We predict that the 4/11 state reported a decade ago by Pan {\em et al.} [Phys. Rev. Lett. {\bf 90}, 016801 (2003)] is a conventional partially spin polarized FQHE of composite fermions, and estimate the Zeeman energy where a phase transition into the unconventional fully spin polarized state will occur.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2013

Tripartite Composite Fermion States

The Read-Rezayi wave function is one of the candidates for the fractional quantum Hall effect at filling fraction $ν=2+\nicefrac{3}{5}$, and thereby also its hole conjugate at $2+\nicefrac{2}{5}$. We study a general class of "tripartite" composite fermion wave functions, which reduce to the Read-Rezayi ground state and quasiholes for appropriate quantum numbers, but also allow a construction of wave functions for quasiparticles and neutral excitations by analogy to the standard composite fermion theory. We present numerical evidence in finite systems that these trial wave functions capture well the low energy physics of a 4-body model interaction. We also compare the tripartite composite fermion wave functions with the exact Coulomb eigenstates at $2+\nicefrac{3}{5}$, and find reasonably good agreement. The ground state as well as several excited states of the 4-body interaction are seen to evolve adiabatically into the corresponding Coulomb states for N=15 particles. These results support the plausibility of the Read-Rezayi proposal for the $2+\nicefrac{2}{5}$ and $2+\nicefrac{3}{5}$ fractional quantum Hall effect. However, certain other proposals also remain viable, and further study of excitations and edge states will be necessary for a decisive establishment of the physical mechanism of these fractional quantum Hall states.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2013

Quantum Hall Effect of Two-Component Bosons at Fractional and Integral Fillings

We investigate the feasibility of many candidate quantum Hall states for two-component bosons in the lowest Landau level. We identify interactions for which spin-singlet incompressible states occur at filling factors $ν=2/3$, 4/5 and 4/3, and spin-partially-polarized states at filling factors 3/4 and 3/2, where "spin" serves as a generic label for the two components. We study ground states, excitations, edge states and entanglement spectrum for systems with up to 16 bosons, and construct explicit trial wave functions to clarify the underlying physics. The composite fermion theory very accurately describes the ground states as well as excitations at $ν=2/3$, 4/5 and 3/4, although it is less satisfactory for the $ν=3/2$ state. For $ν=4/3$ a "non-Abelian spin-singlet" state has been proposed to occur for a 2-body contact interaction; we find that it is more likely that the actual state here is a spin-singlet state of reverse-flux-attached composite fermions at filling $ν^*=4$. We also consider incompressible states at integral filling factors $ν=1$ and 2. The incompressible state at $ν=1$ is shown to be well described by the parton-based Jain spin-singlet wave function, and the incompressible state at $ν=2$ as the spin-singlet state of reverse-flux-attached composite fermions at $ν^*=2$.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2012

Adiabatic continuity between Hofstadter and Chern insulator states

We show that the topologically nontrivial bands of Chern insulators are adiabatic cousins of the Landau bands of Hofstadter lattices. We demonstrate adiabatic connection also between several familiar fractional quantum Hall states on Hofstadter lattices and the fractional Chern insulator states in partially filled Chern bands, which implies that they are in fact different manifestations of the same phase. This adiabatic path provides a way of generating many more fractional Chern insulator states and helps clarify that nonuniformity in the distribution of the Berry curvature is responsible for weakening or altogether destroying fractional topological states.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2012

Microscopic Study of Edge Excitations of Spin-Polarized and Spin-Unpolarized $ν=2/3$ Fractional Quantum Hall Effect

The edge of spin unpolarized or spin polarized $ν=2/3$ fractional quantum Hall states is predicted by the effective theory to support a backward moving neutral mode in addition to a forward moving charge mode. We study this issue from a microscopic perspective where these states are identified with effective filling factor of 2 of composite fermions, but with an effective magnetic field that is antiparallel to the external field. A simple counting from the composite fermion description suggests that there might be two backward moving edge modes, but explicit calculations show that one of these is projected out of the low energy sector, while the remaining mode provides a good microscopic account of the actual counter propagating edge mode. The forward moving modes are identified as "Schur modes," obtained by multiplying the ground state wave function by the symmetric Schur polynomials. The edge of the 2/3 spin unpolarized state provides a particularly striking realization of "spin charge separation" in a one dimensional Tomonaga Luttinger liquids, with the spin and charge modes moving in opposite directions.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗