Fermionic Atoms In Optical Lattices Research Articles

Realizing Altermagnetism in Fermi-Hubbard Models with Ultracold Atoms.

Altermagnetism represents a type of collinear magnetism, that is in some aspects distinct from ferromagnetism and from conventional antiferromagnetism. In contrast to the latter, sublattices of opposite spin are related by spatial rotations and not only by translations and inversions. As a result, altermagnets have spin-split bands leading to unique experimental signatures. Here, we show theoretically how a d-wave altermagnetic phase can be realized with ultracold fermionic atoms in optical lattices. We propose an altermagnetic Hubbard model with anisotropic next-nearest neighbor hopping and obtain the Hartree-Fock phase diagram. The altermagnetic phase separates in a metallic and an insulating phase and is robust over a large parameter regime. We show that one of the defining characteristics of altermagnetism, the anisotropic spin transport, can be probed with trap-expansion experiments.

Numerical calculation of Green's function and momentum distribution for spin-polarized fermions by path integral molecular dynamics.

Most recently, path integral molecular dynamics (PIMD) has been successfully applied to perform simulations of identical bosons and fermions by Hirshberg et al. In this work, we demonstrate that PIMD can be developed to calculate Green's function and extract momentum distributions for spin-polarized fermions. In particular, we show that the momentum distribution calculated by PIMD has potential applications to numerous quantum systems, e.g., ultracold fermionic atoms in optical lattices.

Two-dimensional attractive Hubbard model and the BCS-BEC crossover

Recent experiments with ultracold fermionic atoms in optical lattices have provided a tuneable and clean realization of the attractive Hubbard model (AHM). In view of this, several physical properties may be thoroughly studied across the crossover between weak [Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer, (BCS)] and strong [Bose-Einstein condensation (BEC)] couplings. Here we report on extensive determinant Quantum Monte Carlo (DQMC) studies of the AHM on a square lattice from which several different quantities have been calculated and should be useful as a road map to experiments. We have obtained a detailed phase diagram for the critical superconducting temperature ${T}_{c}$ in terms of the band filling $\ensuremath{\langle}n\ensuremath{\rangle}$ and interaction strength $U$ from which we pinpoint a somewhat wide region $|U|/t\ensuremath{\approx}5\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}1$ ($t$ is the hopping amplitude) and $\ensuremath{\langle}n\ensuremath{\rangle}\ensuremath{\approx}0.79\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.09$ leading to a maximum ${T}_{c}\ensuremath{\approx}0.16t$. Two additional temperature scales, namely, pairing ${T}_{p}$ and degeneracy ${T}_{d}$ have been highlighted: The former sets the scale for pair formation (believed to be closely related to the scale for the gap of spin excitations in cuprates), whereas the latter sets the scale for dominant quantum effects. Our DQMC data for the distribution of doubly occupied sites for the momentum distribution function, and for the quasiparticle weight show distinctive features on both sides of the BCS-BEC crossover, being also suggestive of an underlying crossover between Fermi- and non-Fermi liquid behaviors.

Thermodynamics of the disordered Hubbard model studied via numerical linked-cluster expansions

The interplay of disorder and strong correlations in quantum many-body systems remains an open question. That is despite much progress made in recent years with ultracold atoms in optical lattices to better understand phenomena such as many-body localization or the effect of disorder on Mott metal-insulator transitions. Here, we utilize the numerical linked-cluster expansion technique, extended to treat disordered quantum lattice models, and study exact thermodynamic properties of the disordered Fermi-Hubbard model on the square and cubic geometries. We consider box distributions for the disorder in the onsite energy, the interaction strength, as well as the hopping amplitude and explore how energy, double occupancy, entropy, heat capacity and magnetic correlations of the system in the thermodynamic limit evolve as the strength of disorder changes. We compare our findings with those obtained from determinant quantum Monte Carlo simulations and discuss the relevance of our results to experiments with cold fermionic atoms in optical lattices.

Quantum wakes in lattice fermions

The wake following a vessel in water is a signature interference effect of moving bodies, and, as described by Lord Kelvin, is contained within a constant universal angle. However, wakes may accompany different kinds of moving disturbances in other situations and even in lattice systems. Here, we investigate the effect of moving disturbances on a Fermi lattice gas of ultracold atoms and analyze the novel types of wake patterns that may occur. We show how at half-filling, the wake angles are dominated by the ratio of the hopping energy to the velocity of the disturbance and on the angle of motion relative to the lattice direction. Moreover, we study the difference between wakes left behind a moving particle detector versus that of a moving potential or a moving particle extractor. We show that these scenarios exhibit dramatically different behavior at half-filling, with the ``measurement wake'' following an idealized detector vanishing, though the motion of the detector does still leaves a trace through a ``fluctuation wake.'' Finally, we discuss the experimental requirements to observe our predictions in ultracold fermionic atoms in optical lattices.

Evidence for Moiré Trions in Twisted MoSe2 Homobilayers.

Moiré superlattices of van der Waals structures offer a powerful platform for engineering band structure and quantum states. For instance, Moiré superlattices in magic-angle twisted bilayer graphene, ABC trilayer graphene have been shown to harbor correlated insulating and superconducting states, while in transition metal dichalcogenide (TMD) twisted bilayers, Moiré excitons have been identified. Here we show that the effects of a Moiré superlattice on the band structure are general: In TMD twisted bilayers, excitons and exciton complexes can be trapped in the superlattice in a manner analogous to ultracold bosonic or Fermionic atoms in optical lattices. Using twisted MoSe2 homobilayers as a model system, we present evidence for Moiré trions. Our results thus open possibilities for designer van der Waals structures hosting arrays of Fermionic or bosonic quasiparticles, which can be used to realize tunable many-body states crucial for quantum simulation and quantum information processing.

Competing magnetic orders in a bilayer Hubbard model with ultracold atoms.

Fermionic atoms in optical lattices have served as a useful model system in which to study and emulate the physics of strongly correlated matter. Driven by the advances of high-resolution microscopy, the current research focus is on two-dimensional systems1-3, in which several quantum phases-such as antiferromagnetic Mott insulators for repulsive interactions4-7 and charge-density waves for attractive interactions8-have been observed. However, the lattice structure of real materials, such as bilayer graphene, is composed of coupled layers and is therefore not strictly two-dimensional, which must be taken into account in simulations. Here we realize a bilayer Fermi-Hubbard model using ultracold atoms in an optical lattice, and demonstrate that the interlayer coupling controls a crossover between a planar antiferromagnetically ordered Mott insulator and a band insulator of spin-singlets along the bonds between the layers. We probe the competition of the magnetic ordering by measuring spin-spin correlations both within and between the two-dimensional layers. Our work will enable the exploration of further properties of coupled-layer Hubbard models, such as theoretically predicted superconducting pairing mechanisms9,10.

Achieving the Scaling Limit for Nonequilibrium Green Functions Simulations.

The dynamics of strongly correlated fermions following an external excitation reveals extremely rich collective quantum effects. Examples are fermionic atoms in optical lattices, electrons in correlated materials, and dense quantum plasmas. Presently, the only quantum-dynamics approach that rigorously describes these processes in two and three dimensions is the nonequilibrium Green functions (NEGF) method. However, NEGF simulations are computationally expensive due to their T^{3} scaling with the simulation duration T. Recently, T^{2} scaling was achieved with the generalized Kadanoff-Baym ansatz (GKBA), for second-order Born (SOA) selfenergies, which has substantially extended the scope of NEGF simulations. Here we demonstrate that GKBA-NEGF simulations can be performed with order T^{1} scaling, both for SOA and GW selfenergies, and point out the remarkable capabilities of this approach.

Cluster State Generation with Spin-Orbit Coupled Fermionic Atoms in Optical Lattices.

Measurement-based quantum computation, an alternative paradigm for quantum information processing, uses simple measurements on qubits prepared in cluster states, a class of multiparty entangled states with useful properties. Here we propose and analyze a scheme that takes advantage of the interplay between spin-orbit coupling and superexchange interactions, in the presence of a coherent drive, to deterministically generate macroscopic arrays of cluster states in fermionic alkaline earth atoms trapped in three dimensional (3D) optical lattices. The scheme dynamically generates cluster states without the need of engineered transport, and is robust in the presence of holes, a typical imperfection in cold atom Mott insulators. The protocol is of particular relevance for the new generation of 3D optical lattice clocks with coherence times >10 s, 2 orders of magnitude larger than the cluster state generation time. We propose the use of collective measurements and time reversal of the Hamiltonian to benchmark the underlying Ising model dynamics and the generated many-body correlations.

One-particle spectral function singularities in a one-dimensional gas of spin-1/2 fermions with repulsive delta-function interaction

The momentum, fermionic density, spin density, and interaction dependencies of the exponents that control the (k,ω)-plane singular features of the one-fermion spectral functions of a one-dimensional gas of spin-1/2 fermions with repulsive delta-function interaction both at zero and finite magnetic field are studied in detail. Our results refer to energy scales beyond the reach of the low-energy Tomonaga-Luttinger liquid and rely on the pseudofermion dynamical theory for integrable models. The one-fermion spectral weight distributions associated with the spectral functions studied in this paper may be observed in systems of spin-1/2 ultra-cold fermionic atoms in optical lattices.

Ion Impact Induced Ultrafast Electron Dynamics in Finite Graphene‐Type Hubbard Clusters

Strongly correlated systems of fermions have an interesting phase diagram arising from the Hubbard gap. Excitation across the gap leads to the formation of doubly occupied lattice sites (doublons) which offers interesting electronic and optical properties. Moreover, when the system is driven out of equilibrium interesting collective dynamics may arise that are related to the spatial propagation of doublons. Here, a novel mechanism that was recently proposed by the authors [Balzer et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 121, 267602 (2018)] is verified by exact diagonalization and nonequilibrium Green functions (NEGF) simulations – fermionic doublon creation by the impact of energetic ions. The formation of a nonequilibrium steady state with homogeneous doublon distribution is reported. The effect should be particularly important for correlated finite systems, such as graphene nanoribbons, and directly observable with fermionic atoms in optical lattices. It is demonstrated that doublon formation and propagation in correlated lattice systems can be accurately simulated with NEGF. In addition to two‐time results, single‐time results within the generalized Kadanoff–Baym ansatz (GKBA) with Hartree–Fock propagators (HF‐GKBA) is presented. Finally systematic improvements of the GKBA that use correlated propagators (correlated GKBA) and a correlated initial state are discussed.

Doublon Formation by Ions Impacting a Strongly Correlated Finite Lattice System.

Strongly correlated systems of fermions have a number of exciting collective properties. Among them, the creation of a lattice that is occupied by doublons, i.e., two quantum particles with opposite spins, offers interesting electronic properties. In the past a variety of methods have been proposed to control doublon formation, both, spatially and temporally. Here, a novel mechanism is proposed and verified by exact diagonalization and nonequilibrium Green functions simulations-fermionic doublon creation by the impact of energetic ions. We report the formation of a nonequilibrium steady state with homogeneous doublon distribution. The effect should be particularly important for strongly correlated finite systems, such as graphene nanoribbons, and directly observable with fermionic atoms in optical lattices.

Topological metal bands with double-triple-point fermions in optical lattices

Novel fermionic quasiparticles with integer pseudospins in some energy bands, such as pseudospin-1 triple-point fermions, recently attract increasing interest since they are beyond the conventional spin-$1/2$ Dirac and Weyl counterparts. In this paper, we propose a class of pseudospin-1 fermioic excitations emerging in topological metal bands, dubbed double-triple-point (DTP) fermions. We first present a general three-band continuum model with $C_4$ symmetry in three dimensions, which has three types of threefold degenerate points in the bands classified by their topological charges $C=\pm4,\pm2,0$, respectively. They are dubbed DTPs as spin-1 generalization of double-Weyl points. We then construct two-dimensional and three-dimensional tight-binding lattice models of topological metal bands with exotic DTP fermions near the DTPs. In two dimensions, the band gaps close at a trivial DTP with zero Berry phase, which occurs at the transition between the normal and topological insulator phases. In three dimensions, the topological properties of three different DTP fermions in lattice systems are further investigated, and the effects of breaking $C_4$ symmetry are also studied, which generally leads to splitting each quadratic DTP into two linear triple points and gives topological phase diagrams. Using ultracold fermionic atoms in optical lattices, the proposed models can be realized and the topological properties of the DTP fermions can be detected.

Emergent pseudospin-1 Maxwell fermions with a threefold degeneracy in optical lattices

The discovery of relativistic spin-1/2 fermions such as Dirac and Weyl fermions in condensed-matter or artificial systems opens a new era in modern physics. An interesting but rarely explored question is whether other relativistic spinal excitations could be realized with artificial systems. Here, we construct twoand three-dimensional tight-binding models realizable with cold fermionic atoms in optical lattices, where the low energy excitations are effectively described by the spin-1 Maxwell equations in the Hamiltonian form. These relativistic (linear dispersion) excitations with unconventional integer pseudospin, beyond the Dirac-Weyl-Majorana fermions, are an exotic kind of fermions named asMaxwell fermions.We demonstrate that the systems have rich topological features. For instance, the threefold degenerate points called Maxwell points may have quantized Berry phases and anomalous quantum Hall effects with spin-momentum locking may appear in topological Maxwell insulators in the two-dimensional lattices. In three dimensions,Maxwell points may have nontrivial monopole charges of \pm2 with two Fermi arcs connecting them, and the merging of the Maxwell points leads to topological phase transitions. Finally, we propose realistic schemes for realizing the model Hamiltonians and detecting the topological properties of the emergent Maxwell quasiparticles in optical lattices.

Equation of State of the Two-Dimensional Hubbard Model

The subtle interplay between kinetic energy, interactions, and dimensionality challenges our comprehension of strongly correlated physics observed, for example, in the solid state. In this quest, the Hubbard model has emerged as a conceptually simple, yet rich model describing such physics. Here we present an experimental determination of the equation of state of the repulsive two-dimensional Hubbard model over a broad range of interactions 0≲U/t≲20 and temperatures, down to k_{B}T/t=0.63(2) using high-resolution imaging of ultracold fermionic atoms in optical lattices. We show density profiles, compressibilities, and double occupancies over the whole doping range, and, hence, our results constitute benchmarks for state-of-the-art theoretical approaches.

Exact diagonalization of HeisenbergSU(N)chains in the fully symmetric and antisymmetric representations

Motivated by recent experimental progress in the context of ultra-cold multi-color fermionic atoms in optical lattices, we have developed a method to exactly diagonalize the Heisenberg $SU(N)$ Hamiltonian with several particles per site living in a fully symmetric or antisymmetric representation of $SU(N)$. The method, based on the use of standard Young tableaux, takes advantage of the full $SU(N)$ symmetry, allowing one to work directly in each irreducible representations of the global $SU(N)$ group. Since the $SU(N)$ singlet sector is often much smaller than the full Hilbert space, this enables one to reach much larger system sizes than with conventional exact diagonalizations. The method is applied to the study of Heisenberg chains in the symmetric representation with two and three particles per site up to $N=10$ and up to 20 sites. For the length scales accessible to this approach, all systems except the Haldane chain ($SU(2)$ with two particles per site) appear to be gapless, and the central charge and scaling dimensions extracted from the results are consistent with a critical behaviour in the $SU(N)$ level $k$ Wess-Zumino-Witten universality class, where $k$ is the number of particles per site. These results point to the existence of a cross-over between this universality class and the asymptotic low-energy behavior with a gapped spectrum or a critical behavior in the $SU(N)$ level $1$ WZW universality class.

Nonequilibrium Green Functions Approach to Strongly Correlated Fermions in Lattice Systems

AbstractQuantum dynamics in strongly correlated systems are of high current interest in many fields including dense plasmas, nuclear matter and condensed matter and ultracold atoms. An important model case are fermions in lattice systems that is well suited to analyze, in detail, a variety of electronic and magnetic properties of strongly correlated solids. Such systems have recently been reproduced with fermionic atoms in optical lattices which allow for a very accurate experimental analysis of the dynamics and of transport processes such as diffusion. The theoretical analysis of such systems far from equilibrium is very challenging since quantum and spin effects as well as correlations have to be treated non‐perturbatively. The only accurate method that has been successful so far are density matrix renormalization group (DMRG) simulations. However, these simulations are presently limited to one‐dimensional (1D) systems and short times. Extension of quantum dynamics simulations to two and three dimensions is commonly viewed as one of the major challenges in this field. Recently we have reported a breakthrough in this area [N. Schlünzen et al., Phys. Rev. B (2016)] where we were able to simulate the expansion dynamics of strongly correlated fermions in a Hubbard lattice following a quench of the confinement potential in 1D, 2D and 3D. The results not only exhibited excellent agreement with the experimental data but, in addition, revealed new features of the short‐time dynamics where correlations and entanglement are being build up. The method used in this work are nonequilibrium Green functions (NEGF) which are found to be very powerful in the treatment of fermionic lattice systems filling the gap presently left open by DMRG in 2D and 3D.In this paper we present a detailed introduction in the NEGF approach and its application to inhomogeneous Hubbard clusters. In detail we discuss the proper strong coupling approximation which is given by T ‐matrix selfenergies that sum up two‐particle scattering processes to infinite order. The efficient numerical implemen‐tation of the method is discussed in detail as it has allowed us to achieve dramatic performance gains. This has been the basis for the treatment of more than 100 particles over large time intervals. The numerical results presented in this paper concentrate on the diffusion in 1D to 3D lattices. We find that the expansion dynamics consist of three different phases that are linked with the build‐up of correlations. In the long time limit, a universal scaling with the particle number is revealed. By extrapolating the expansion velocities to the macroscopic limit, the obtained results show excellent agreement with recent experiments on ultracold fermions in optical lattices. Moreover we present results for the site‐resolved behavior of correlations and entanglement that can be directly compared with experiments using the recently developed atomic microscope technique. (© 2015 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

Synthetic helical liquids with ultracold atoms in optical lattices

We discuss a platform for the synthetic realization of key physical properties of helical Tomonaga Luttinger liquids (HTLLs) with ultracold fermionic atoms in one-dimensional optical lattices. The HTLL is a strongly correlated metallic state where spin polarization and propagation direction of the itinerant particles are locked to each other. We propose an unconventional one-dimensional Fermi-Hubbard model which, at quarter filling, resembles the HTLL in the long wavelength limit, as we demonstrate with a combination of analytical (bosonization) and numerical (density matrix renormalization group) methods. An experimentally feasible scheme is provided for the realization of this model with ultracold fermionic atoms in optical lattices. Finally, we discuss how the robustness of the HTLL against back-scattering and imperfections, well known from its realization at the edge of two-dimensional topological insulators, is reflected in the synthetic one-dimensional scenario proposed here.

Controlled pairing symmetry of the superfluid state in systems of three-component repulsive fermionic atoms in optical lattices

We investigate the pairing symmetry of the superfluid state in repulsively interacting three-component (colors) fermionic atoms in optical lattices. When two of the three color-dependent repulsions are much larger than the other, pairing symmetry is an extended s wave, although the superfluid state appears adjacent to the paired Mott insulator in the phase diagram. As the difference between the three repulsions is decreased in square optical lattices, the extended s-wave pairing changes into a nodal s-wave pairing and then into a d-wave pairing. This change in pairing symmetry is attributed to the competition among the density fluctuations of unpaired atoms, the quantum fluctuations of the color-density wave, and those of the color-selective antiferromagnet. This phenomenon can be studied using existing experimental techniques.We investigate the pairing symmetry of the superfluid state in repulsively interacting three-component (color) fermionic atoms in optical lattices. When two of the three color-dependent repulsions are much stronger than the other, pairing symmetry is an extended $s$ wave although the superfluid state appears adjacent to the paired Mott insulator in the phase diagram. On the other hand, when two of the three color-dependent repulsions are weaker than the other, pairing symmetry is a d_{x^2-y^2}-wave. This change in pairing symmetry is attributed to the change in the dominant quantum fluctuations from the density fluctuations of unpaired atoms and the color-density wave fluctuations to the color-selective antiferromagnet fluctuations. This phenomenon can be studied using existing experimental techniques.

Variational Monte Carlo investigation ofSU(N)Heisenberg chains

Motivated by recent experimental progress in the context of ultra-cold multi-color fermionic atoms in optical lattices, we have investigated the properties of the SU($N$) Heisenberg chain with totally antisymmetric irreducible representations, the effective model of Mott phases with $m < N$ particles per site. These models have been studied for arbitrary $N$ and $m$ with non-abelian bosonization [I. Affleck, Nuclear Physics B 265, 409 (1986); 305, 582 (1988)], leading to predictions about the nature of the ground state (gapped or critical) in most but not all cases. Using exact diagonalization and variational Monte-Carlo based on Gutzwiller projected fermionic wave functions, we have been able to verify these predictions for a representative number of cases with $N \leq 10$ and $m \leq N/2$, and we have shown that the opening of a gap is associated to a spontaneous dimerization or trimerization depending on the value of m and N. We have also investigated the marginal cases where abelian bosonization did not lead to any prediction. In these cases, variational Monte-Carlo predicts that the ground state is critical with exponents consistent with conformal field theory.