Long time dynamics of a single-particle extended quantum walk on a one-dimensional lattice with complex hoppings: a generalized hydrodynamic description

Abstract

We study a single-particle continuous-time quantum walk on a one-dimensional spatial lattice with complex nearest neighbour (NN) and next-nearest neighbour (NNN) hopping amplitudes. We show that the model allows for controlled information transfer and directional biasing without a biased initial state. Specifically, we show that for an unbiased initial state, complex couplings lead to chiral propagation and a causal cone structure asymmetric about the origin. We provide a hydrodynamic description for the dynamics in the large space–time limit. We obtain a global ‘quasi-stationary state’ which can be described in terms of the local quasi-particle densities satisfying Euler type of hydrodynamic equations and characterized by an infinite set of conservation laws. Further, we show that higher-order hydrodynamic equations can be used to describe the anomalous sub-diffusive scaling near the extremal fronts. The long-time behaviour for any complex NNN hopping with a nonzero real component is similar to that of purely real hopping; at a critical coupling strength, there is a Lifshitz transition where the topology of the causal structure changes from a regime with one causal cone to a regime with two nested (asymmetric) causal cones. For purely imaginary NNN hopping, there is a transition from one causal cone to a regime with two partially overlapping cones which can be attributed to the existence of degenerate maximal fronts. Both the nature of the Lifshitz transition and the scaling behaviour at the critical coupling are different in the two cases. We also discuss possible experimental realizations of such a model.