Universal Defects Statistics with Strong Long-Range Interactions

Year: 2024

Authors: Gherardini S., Buffoni L., Defenu N.

Autors Affiliation: CNR INO, Largo Enr Fermi 6, I-50125 Florence, Italy; Univ Firenze, LENS, I-50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy; Univ Florence, Dept Phys & Astron, I-50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy; Swiss Fed Inst Technol, Inst Theoret Phys, Wolfgang Pauli Str 27, Zurich, Switzerland; CNR INO, Area Sci Pk, I-34149 Trieste, Italy.

Abstract: Quasi-static transformations, or slow quenches, of many-body quantum systems across quantum critical points generate topological defects. The Kibble-Zurek mechanism regulates the appearance of defects in a local quantum system through a classical combinatorial process. However, long-range interactions disrupt the conventional Kibble-Zurek scaling and lead to a density of defects that is independent of the rate of the transformation. In this Letter, we analytically determine the complete full counting statistics of defects generated by slow annealing a strong long-range system across its quantum critical point. We demonstrate that the mechanism of defect generation in long-range systems is a purely quantum process with no classical equivalent. Furthermore, universality is not only observed in the defect density but also in all the moments of the distribution. Our findings can be tested on various experimental platforms, including Rydberg gases and trapped ions.

Journal/Review: PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS

Volume: 133 (11)      Pages from: 113401-1  to: 113401-7

More Information: S. G. warmly thanks Ricardo Puebla for discussions about irreversible work generation from crossing an infinitely degenerate QCP. N. D. acknowledges useful discussion with G. M. Graf during the early stages of this work. This work was supported by The Blanceflor Foundation for financial support through the project The theRmodynamics behInd thE meaSuremenT postulate of quantum mEchanics (TRIESTE) , European Union under GA No. 101077500 – QLR-Net, the PNRR MUR project PE0000023-NQSTI funded by the European Union – Next Generation EU (N. D. and S. G.) and the PNRR MUR project SOE0000098 (L. B.) . This research was funded in part by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) [200021_207537] . The support of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) under Germany ’ s Excellence Strategy EXC2181/1-390900948 (the Heidelberg STRUCTURES Excellence Cluster) is also acknowledged (N. D.) .
KeyWords: Body Approximation Methods; Dependent Harmonic-oscillator; Solvable Model; Cosmological Experiments; Phase-transition; Quantum-systems; Validity; Propagation; Particle; Dynamics
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.133.113401