Huan-Qiang Zhou

Fidelity and quantum phase transitions

It is shown that the fidelity, a basic notion of quantum information science, may be used to characterize quantum phase transitions, regardless of what type of internal order is present in quantum many-body states. The equivalence between the existence of an order parameter and the orthogonality of different ground-state wavefunctions for a system undergoing a quantum phase transition is used to justify the introduction of the notions of irrelevant and relevant information as the counterparts of fluctuations and orders in the conventional description. The irrelevant and relevant information are quantified, which allows us to identify unstable and stable fixed points (in the sense of renormalization group theory) for quantum spin chains.

Algebraic Bethe ansatz method for the exact calculation of energy spectra and form factors: applications to models of Bose–Einstein condensates and metallic nanograins

In this review we demonstrate how the algebraic Bethe ansatz is used for the calculation of the-energy spectra and form factors (operator matrix elements in the basis of Hamiltonian eigenstates) in exactly solvable quantum systems. As examples we apply the theory to several models of current interest in the study of Bose-Einstein condensates, which have been successfully created using ultracold dilute atomic gases. The first model we introduce describes Josephson tunnelling between two coupled Bose-Einstein condensates. It can be used not only for the study of tunnelling between condensates of atomic gases, but for solid state Josephson junctions and coupled Cooper pair boxes. The theory is also applicable to models of atomic-molecular Bose-Einstein condensates, with two examples given and analysed. Additionally, these same two models are relevant to studies in quantum optics; Finally, we discuss the model of Bardeen, Cooper and Schrieffer in this framework, which is appropriate for systems of ultracold fermionic atomic gases, as well as being applicable for the description of superconducting correlations in metallic grains with nanoscale dimensions.; In applying all the above models to. physical situations, the need for an exact analysis of small-scale systems is established due to large quantum fluctuations which render mean-field approaches inaccurate.

Ground State Fidelity from Tensor Network Representations

For any D-dimensional quantum lattice system, the fidelity between two ground state many-body wave functions is mapped onto the partition function of a D-dimensional classical statistical vertex lattice model with the same lattice geometry. The fidelity per lattice site, analogous to the free energy per site, is well defined in the thermodynamic limit and can be used to characterize the phase diagram of the model. We explain how to compute the fidelity per site in the context of tensor network algorithms, and demonstrate the approach by analyzing the two-dimensional quantum Ising model with transverse and parallel magnetic fields.

Entanglement and boundary critical phenomena

We investigate boundary critical phenomena from a quantum-information perspective. Bipartite entanglement in the ground state of one-dimensional quantum systems is quantified using the Renyi entropy S-alpha, which includes the von Neumann entropy (alpha -> 1) and the single-copy entanglement (alpha ->infinity) as special cases. We identify the contribution of the boundaries to the Renyi entropy, and show that there is an entanglement loss along boundary renormalization group (RG) flows. This property, which is intimately related to the Affleck-Ludwig g theorem, is a consequence of majorization relations between the spectra of the reduced density matrix along the boundary RG flows. We also point out that the bulk contribution to the single-copy entanglement is half of that to the von Neumann entropy, whereas the boundary contribution is the same.

Superconducting correlations in metallic nanoparticles: Exact solution of the BCS model by the algebraic Bethe ansatz

Superconducting pairing of electrons in nanoscale metallic particles with discrete energy levels and a fixed number of electrons is described by the reduced Bardeen, Cooper, and Schrieffer model Hamiltonian. We show that this model is integrable by the algebraic Bethe ansatz. The eigenstates, spectrum, conserved operators, integrals of motion, and norms of wave functions are obtained. Furthermore, the quantum inverse problem is solved, meaning that form factors and correlation functions can be explicitly evaluated. Closed form expressions are given for the form factors and correlation functions that describe superconducting pairing.

Integrable open-boundary conditions for the q-deformed supersymmetric U model of strongly correlated electrons

A general graded reflection equation algebra is proposed and the corresponding boundary quantum inverse scattering method is formulated. The formalism is applicable to all boundary lattice systems where an invertible R-matrix exists. As an application, the integrable open-boundary conditions for the q-deformed supersymmetric U model of strongly correlated electrons are investigated. The diagonal boundary K-matrices are found and a class of integrable boundary terms are determined. The boundary system is solved by means of the coordinate space Bethe ansatz technique and the Bethe ansatz equations are derived. As a sideline, it is shown that all R-matrices associated with a quantum affine superalgebra enjoy the crossing-unitarity property

Fidelity approach to quantum phase transitions: finite-size scaling for the quantum Ising model in a transverse field

We analyze the scaling parameter, extracted from the fidelity for two different ground states, for the one-dimensional quantum Ising model in a transverse field near the critical point. It is found that, in the thermodynamic limit, the scaling parameter is singular, and the derivative of its logarithmic function with respect to the transverse field strength is logarithmically divergent at the critical point. The scaling behavior is confirmed numerically by performing a finite size scaling analysis for systems of different sizes, consistent with the conformal invariance at the critical point. This allows us to extract the correlation length critical exponent, which turns out to be universal in the sense that the correlation length critical exponent does not depend on either the anisotropic parameter or the transverse field strength.

Graded reflection equation algebras and integrable Kondo impurities in the one-dimensional t-J model

Integrable Kondo impurities in two cases of the one-dimensional t-J model are studied by means of the boundary Z(2)-graded quantum inverse scattering method. The boundary K-matrices depending on the local magnetic moments of the impurities are presented as non-trivial realizations of the reflection equation algebras in an impurity Hilbert space. Furthermore, these models are solved by using the algebraic Bethe ansatz method and the Bethe ansatz equations are obtained

Simulation of one-dimensional quantum systems with a global SU(2) symmetry

In this paper, we describe a refined matrix product representation for many-body states that are invariant under SU(2) transformations and use it to extend the time-evolving block decimation (TEBD) algorithm to the simulation of time evolution in the presence of an SU(2) symmetry. The resulting algorithm, when tested in a critical quantum spin chain, proved to be more efficient than the standard TEBD.We propose a refined matrix product state representation for many-body quantum states that are invariant under SU(2) transformations, and indicate how to extend the time-evolving block decimation (TEBD) algorithm in order to simulate time evolution in an SU(2) invariant system. The resulting algorithm is tested in a critical quantum spin chain and shown to be significantly more efficient than the standard TEBD.

Exact Results for a Tunnel-Coupled Pair of Trapped Bose-Einstein Condensates

A model describing coherent quantum tunnelling between two trapped Bose-Einstein condensates is discussed. It is not well known that the model admits an exact solution, obtained some time ago, with the energy spectrum derived through the algebraic Bethe ansatz. An asymptotic analysis of the Bethe ansatz equations leads us to explicit expressions for the energies of the ground and the first excited states in the limit of weak tunnelling and all energies for strong tunnelling. The results are used to extract the asymptotic limits of the quantum fluctuations of the boson number difference between the two Bose-Einstein condensates and to characterize the degree of coherence in the system.