Matrix product representations for all valence bond states

Abstract

We introduce a simple representation for irreducible spherical tensor operators of the rotation group of arbitrary integer or half integer rank and use these tensor operators to construct matrix product states corresponding to all the variety of valence bond states proposed in the Affleck--Kennedy--Lieb--Tasaki (AKLT) construction. These include the fully dimerized states of arbitrary spins, with uniform or alternating patterns of spins, which are ground states of Hamiltonians with nearest and next-nearest-neighbor interactions, and the partially dimerized or AKLT/valence bond solid states, which are constructed from them by projection. The latter states are translation-invariant ground states of Hamiltonians with nearest-neighbor interactions.