SSH Model Research Articles

PT symmetry protected non-Hermitian topological systems

We study PT symmetry protected topological phase in non-Hermitian 1D and 2D systems. We show that topological phase exist in non-Hermitian PT symmetric systems for both gapped and gapless systems and discuss appearance of exceptional points. We apply our formalism to a complex extension of the SSH model, topological semimetals and nodal superconductors.

Topological properties of a bipartite lattice of domain wall states

We propose a generalization of the Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) model of the bipartite lattice, consisting of a periodic array of domain walls. The low-energy description is governed by the superposition of localized states at each domain wall, forming an effective mono-atomic chain at a larger scale. When the domain walls are dimerized, topologically protected edge states can appear, just like in the original SSH model. These new edge states are formed exclusively by soliton-like states and therefore, the new topological states are qualitatively different from the regular SSH edge states. They posses a much longer localization length and are more resistant to on-site disorder, in marked contrast to the standard SSH case.

Su-Schrieffer-Heeger model inspired acoustic interface states and edge states

If a full bandgap closes and then reopens when we continuously deform a periodic system while keeping its symmetry, a topological phase transition usually occurs. A common model demonstrating such a topological phase transition in condensed matter physics is the Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) model. As is well known, two distinct topological phases emerge when the intracell hopping is tuned from smaller to larger with respect to the intercell hopping in the model. The former case is topologically trivial, while the latter case is topologically non-trivial. Here, we design a 1D periodic acoustic system in exact analogy with the SSH model. The unit cell of the acoustic system is composed of two resonators and two junction tubes connecting them. We show that the topological phase transition happens in our acoustic analog when we tune the radii of the junction tubes which control the intercell and intracell hoppings. The topological phase transition is characterized by the abrupt change in the geometric Zak phase. The topological interface states between non-trivial and trivial phases of our acoustic analog are experimentally measured, and the results agree very well with the numerical values. Furthermore, we show that topologically non-trivial phases of our acoustic analog of the SSH model can support edge states, on which the discussion is absent in previous works about topological acoustics. The edge states are robust against localized defects and perturbations.

Topological phonon polaritons in one-dimensional non-Hermitian silicon carbide nanoparticle chains

Topological phonon polaritons (TPhPs) are highly protected and localized edge modes that are capable of achieving a strong confinement of electromagnetic waves and immune to impurities and disorder. Here we realize TPhPs by constructing one-dimensional dimerized silicon carbide nanoparticle chains, which mimic the topological property of the well-known Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) model. We analytically calculate the complex band structure of such chains by taking all near-field and far-field dipole-dipole interactions into account. For longitudinal modes, we demonstrate that, despite the non-Hermiticity and breaking of the chiral symmetry, the band topology can be still characterized by the complex Zak phase, which is quantized and indicates a topological phase transition when the dimerization parameter $\beta$ changes from less than 0.5 to larger than 0.5, like the conventional Hermitian SSH model. By calculating the eigenmodes of a finite chain, we find such a dimerized chain with $\beta>0.5$ supports nontrivial topological eigenmodes localized over both of its edges, indicating the validity of the bulk-boundary correspondence. On the other hand, for transverse modes, we discover a topological phase transition by increasing the lattice constant, which is due to the presence of strong long-range far-field transverse dipole-dipole interactions decaying with the distance $r$ as $1/r$ for an infinitely long chain. However, we surprisingly find the emergence of non-Hermitian skin effect in a finite chain, which leads to the breakdown of the bulk-boundary correspondence. Furthermore, by incorporating the effect of localized bulk eigenmodes and proposing a modified complex Zak phase for a finite lattice, we still recover the topological behavior of the conventional SSH model. We also demonstrate the excitation of topological phonon polaritons and show their enhancement to the photonic LDOS.

Topological acoustics in coupled nanocavity arrays

The Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) model is likely the simplest one-dimensional concept to study non-trivial topological phases and topological excitations. Originally developed to explain the electric conductivity of polyacetylene, it has become a platform for the study of topological effects in electronics, photonics and ultra-cold atomic systems. Here, we propose an experimentally feasible implementation of the SSH model based on coupled one-dimensional acoustic nanoresonators working in the GHz-THz range. In this simulator it is possible to implement different signs in the nearest neighbor interaction terms, showing full tunability of all parameters in the SSH model. Based on this concept we construct topological transition points generating nanophononic edge and interface states and propose an easy scheme to experimentally probe their spatial complex amplitude distribution directly by well-established optical pump-probe techniques.

Simple harmonic oscillation in a non-Hermitian Su-Schrieffer-Heeger chain at the exceptional point

The balance of gain and loss in an open system may maintain certain Hermitian dynamical behaviors, which can be hardly observed in a popular Hermitian system. In this paper, we systematically study a 1D PT -symmetry non-Hermitian SSH model with open boundary condition based on exact approximate solution. We show that the long-wave length standing-wave modes can be achieved within the linear dispersion region when the system is tuned at the exceptional point (EP). The whole Hilbert space can be decomposed into two quasi-Hermitian subspaces, which are consisted of positive and negative energy levels, respectively. Within each subspace, the system maintains all the features of a Hermitian one. We construct a coherent-like state in a subspace and find that it exhibits perfect simple harmonic motion (SHM). In contrast to a canonical coherent state, the shape of the wavepacket deforms periodically rather than entirely translation. And the amplitude of the SHM is not determined by the initial condition but the shape of the wavepacket. Our result indicates that novel Hermitian dynamics can be realized by a non-Hermitian system.

Topological photonic states in one-dimensional dimerized ultracold atomic chains

We study the topological optical states in one-dimensional (1D) dimerized ultracold atomic chains, as an extension of the Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) model. By taking the fully retarded near-field and far-field dipole-dipole interactions into account, we describe the system by an effective non-Hermitian Hamiltonian, vastly different from the Hermitian Hamiltonian of the conventional SSH model. We analytically calculate the complex bandstructures for infinitely long chains, and show that the topological invariant, i.e., the complex Zak phase, is still quantized and becomes nontrivial when the dimerization parameter $\beta>0.5$, despite the broken chiral symmetry and non-Hermiticity. We have verified the validity of the bulk-boundary correspondence for this non-Hermitian system by further analyzing the eigenstate distributions along with their inverse participation ratios (IPRs) for finite chains, where topologically protected edge states are unambiguously identified. We also reveal that such topological edge states are robust under symmetry-breaking disorders. For transverse eigenstates, we further discover the increase of localization length of topological edge states with the increase of lattice period due to the presence of strong far-field dipole-dipole interactions. Moreover, the ultra-strong scattering cross section and ultra-narrow linewidth of a single cold atom allow us to observe in more detail about topological states than in conventional systems, such as the frequency shift with respect to the single-atom resonance and the largely tunable bandgap. We envisage these topological photonic states can provide an efficient interface between light and matter.

Identifying quantum phase transitions with adversarial neural networks

The identification of phases of matter is a challenging task, especially in quantum mechanics, where the complexity of the ground state appears to grow exponentially with the size of the system. We address this problem with state-of-the-art deep learning techniques: adversarial domain adaptation. We derive the phase diagram of the whole parameter space starting from a fixed and known subspace using unsupervised learning. The input data set contains both labeled and unlabeled data instances. The first kind is a system that admits an accurate analytical or numerical solution, and one can recover its phase diagram. The second type is the physical system with an unknown phase diagram. Adversarial domain adaptation uses both types of data to create invariant feature extracting layers in a deep learning architecture. Once these layers are trained, we can attach an unsupervised learner to the network to find phase transitions. We show the success of this technique by applying it on several paradigmatic models: the Ising model with different temperatures, the Bose-Hubbard model, and the SSH model with disorder. The input is the ground state without any manual feature engineering, and the dimension of the parameter space is unrestricted. The method finds unknown transitions successfully and predicts transition points in close agreement with standard methods. This study opens the door to the classification of physical systems where the phases boundaries are complex such as the many-body localization problem or the Bose glass phase.

Topological phases in the non-Hermitian Su-Schrieffer-Heeger model

We address the conditions required for a $\mathbb{Z}$ topological classification in the most general form of the non-Hermitian Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) model. Any chirally-symmetric SSH model will possess a "conjugated-pseudo-Hermiticity" which we show is responsible for a quantized "complex" Berry phase. Consequently, we provide the first example where the complex Berry phase of a band is used as a quantized invariant to predict the existence of gapless edge modes in a non-Hermitian model. The chirally-broken, $PT$-symmetric model is studied; we suggest an explanation for why the topological invariant is a global property of the Hamiltonian. A geometrical picture is provided by examining eigenvector evolution on the Bloch sphere. We justify our analysis numerically and discuss relevant applications.

Two-leg Su-Schrieffer-Heeger chain with glide reflection symmetry

The Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) model lays the foundation of many important concepts in quantum topological matters. Since it tells one that topological states may be distinguished by abelian geometric phases, a question naturally arises as to what happens if one assembles two topologically distinct states. Here, we show that a spin-dependent double-well optical lattice allows one to couple two topologically distinct SSH chains in the bulk and realise a glided-two-leg SSH model that respects the glide reflection symmetry. Such model gives rise to intriguing quantum phenomena beyond the paradigm of a traditional SSH model. It is characterised by Wilson line that requires non-abelian Berry connections, and the interplay between the glide symmetry and interaction automatically leads to charge fractionalisation without jointing two lattice potentials at an interface. Our work demonstrates the power of ultracold atoms to create new theoretical models for studying topological matters.

Quantum Phase Transition and Entanglement in Topological Quantum Wires

We investigate the quantum phase transition of the Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) model by inspecting the two-site entanglements in the ground state. It is shown that the topological phase transition of the SSH model is signified by a nonanalyticity of local entanglement, which becomes discontinuous for finite even system sizes, and that this nonanalyticity has a topological origin. Such a peculiar singularity has a universal nature in one-dimensional topological phase transitions of noninteracting fermions. We make this clearer by pointing out that an analogous quantity in the Kitaev chain exhibiting the identical nonanalyticity is the local electron density. As a byproduct, we show that there exists a different type of phase transition, whereby the pattern of the two-site entanglements undergoes a sudden change. This transition is characterised solely by quantum information theory and does not accompany the closure of the spectral gap. We analyse the scaling behaviours of the entanglement in the vicinities of the transition points.

О рассеянии и квазиуровнях в модели SSH

О рассеянии и квазиуровнях в модели SSH

Relation between PT -symmetry breaking and topologically nontrivial phases in the Su-Schrieffer-Heeger and Kitaev models

Non-Hermitian systems with $\mathcal{PT}$ symmetry can possess purely real eigenvalue spectra. In this work two one-dimensional systems with two different topological phases, the topological nontrivial Phase (TNP) and the topological trivial phase (TTP) combined with $\mathcal{PT}$-symmetric non-Hermitian potentials are investigated. The models of choice are the Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) model and the Kitaev chain. The interplay of a spontaneous $\mathcal{PT}$-symmetry breaking due to gain and loss with the topological phase is different for the two models. The SSH model undergoes a $\mathcal{PT}$-symmetry breaking transition in the TNP immediately with the presence of a non-vanishing gain and loss strength $\gamma$, whereas the TTP exhibits a parameter regime in which a purely real eigenvalue spectrum exists. For the Kitaev chain the $\mathcal{PT}$-symmetry breaking is independent of the topological phase. We show that the topological interesting states -- the edge states -- are the reason for the different behaviors of the two models and that the intrinsic particle-hole symmetry of the edge states in the Kitaev chain is responsible for a conservation of $\mathcal{PT}$ symmetry in the TNP.

Introduction to Topological Phases and Electronic Interactions in (2+1) Dimensions

A brief introduction to topological phases is provided, considering several two-band Hamiltonians in one- and two-dimensions. Relevant concepts of the topological insulator theory, such as: Berry phase, Chern number, and the quantum adiabatic theorem, are reviewed in a basic framework, which is meant to be accessible to non-specialists. We discuss the Kitaev chain, SSH, and BHZ models. The role of the electromagnetic interaction in the topological insulator theory is addressed in the light of the Pseudo quantum electrodynamics (PQED). The well known parity anomaly for massless Dirac particle is reviewed in terms of the Chern number. Within the continuum limit, a half-quantized Hall conductivity is obtained. Thereafter, by considering the lattice regularization of the Dirac theory, we show how one may obtain the well known quantum Hall conductivity for a single Dirac cone. The renormalization of the electron energy spectrum, for both small and large coupling regime, is derived. In particular, it is shown that massless Dirac particles may, only in the strong correlated limit, break either chiral or parity symmetries. For graphene, this implies the generation of Landau-like energy levels and the quantum valley Hall effect.

Dual coupling effective band model for polarons

Non-diagonal couplings to a bosonic bath completely change polaronic dynamics, from the usual diagonally-coupled paradigm of smoothly-varying properties. We study, using analytic and numerical methods, a model having both diagonal Holstein and non-diagonal Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) couplings. The critical coupling found previously in the pure SSH model, at which the $k=0$ effective mass diverges, now becomes a transition line in the coupling constant plane - the form of the line depends on the adiabaticity parameter. Detailed results are given for the quasiparticle and ground state properties, over a wide range of couplings and adiabaticity ratios. The new paradigm involves a destabilization, at the transition line, of the simple Holstein polaron to one with a finite ground-state momentum, but with everywhere a continuously evolving band shape. No 'self-trapping transition' exists in any of these models. The physics may be understood entirely in terms of competition between different hopping terms in a simple renormalized effective band theory. The possibility of further transitions is suggested by the results.

Topological zero-energy modes in time-reversal-symmetry-broken systems

The well-known Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) model predicts that a chain of sites with alternating coupling constant exhibits two topological distinct phases, and at the truncated edge of the topological nontrivial phase there exists topologically protected edge modes. Such modes are named zero-energy modes as their eigenvalues are located exactly at the midgaps of the corresponding bandstructures. The previous publications have reported a variety of photonic realizations of the SSH model, however, all of these studies have been restricted in the systems of time-reversal-symmetry (TRS), and thus the important question how the breaking of TRS affects the topological edge modes has not been explored. In this work, to the best of our knowledge, we study for the first time the topological zero-energy modes in the systems where the TRS is broken. The system used here is semiconductor microcavities supporting exciton-polariton quasi-particle, in which the interplay between the spin-orbit coupling stemming from the TE-TM energy splitting and the Zeeman effect causes the TRS to break. We first study the topological edge modes occurring at the edge of one-dimensional microcavity array that has alternative coupling strengths between adjacent microcavity, and, by rigorously solving the Schrdinger-like equations (see Eq.(1) or Eq.(2) in the main text), we find that the eigen-energies of topological zero-energy modes are no longer pinned at the midgap position:rather, with the increasing of the spin-orbit coupling, they gradually shift from the original midgap position, with the spin-down edge modes moving toward the lower band while the spin-up edge modes moving towards the upper band. Interestingly enough, the mode profiles of these edge modes remain almost unchanged even they are approaching the bulk transmission bands, which is in sharp contrast to the conventional defect modes that have an origin of bifurcation from the Bloch mode of the upper or lower bands. We also study the edge modes in the two-dimensional microcavity square array, and find that the topological zero modes acquire mobility along the truncated edge due to the coupling from the adjacent arrays. Importantly, owing to the breaking of the TRS, a pair of counterpropagating edge modes, of which one has a momentum k and the other has -k, is no longer of energy degeneracy; as a result the scattering between the forward-and backward-propagating modes is greatly suppressed. Thus, we propose the concept of the one-dimensional topological zero-energy modes that are propagating along the two-dimensional lattice edge, with extremely weak backscattering even on the collisions of the topological zero-energy modes with structural defects or disorder.

Two-body physics in the Su-Schrieffer-Heeger model

We consider two interacting bosons in a dimerized Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) lattice. We identify a rich variety of two-body states. In particular, for open boundary conditions and moderate interactions, edge bound states (EBS) are present even for the dimerization that does not sustain single-particle edge states. Moreover, for large values of the interactions, we find a breaking of the standard bulk-boundary correspondence. Based on the mapping of two interacting particles in one dimension onto a single particle in two dimensions, we propose an experimentally realistic coupled optical fibers setup as quantum simulator of the two-body SSH model. This setup is able to highlight the localization properties of the states as well as the presence of a resonant scattering mechanism provided by a bound state that crosses the scattering continuum, revealing the closed-channel population in real time and real space.

Interplay of Site and Bond Electron-Phonon Coupling in One Dimension.

The interplay of bond and charge correlations is studied in a one-dimensional model with both Holstein and Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) couplings to quantum phonons. The problem is solved exactly by quantum MonteCarlo simulations. If one of the couplings dominates, the ground state is a Peierls insulator with long-range bond or charge order. At weak coupling, the results suggest a spin-gapped and repulsive metallic phase arising from the competing order parameters and lattice fluctuations. Such a phase is absent from the pure SSH model even for quantum phonons. At strong coupling, evidence for a continuous transition between the two Peierls states is presented.

Nonsymmorphic symmetry-required band crossings in topological semimetals

We show that for two-band systems nonsymmorphic symmetries may enforce the existence of band crossings in the bulk, which realize Fermi surfaces of reduced dimensionality. We find that these unavoidable crossings originate from the momentum dependence of the nonsymmorphic symmetry, which puts strong restrictions on the global structure of the band configurations. Three different types of nonsymmorphic symmetries are considered: (i) a unitary nonsymmorphic symmetry, (ii) a nonsymmorphic magnetic symmetry, and (iii) a nonsymmorphic symmetry combined with inversion. For nonsymmorphic symmetries of the latter two types, the band crossings are located at high-symmetry points of the Brillouin zone, with their exact positions being determined by the algebra of the symmetry operators. To characterize these band degeneracies we introduce a \emph{global} topological charge and show that it is of $\mathbb{Z}_2$ type, which is in contrast to the \emph{local} topological charge of Fermi points in, say, Weyl semimetals. To illustrate these concepts, we discuss the $\pi$-flux state as well as the SSH model at its critical point and show that these two models fit nicely into our general framework of nonsymmorphic two-band systems.

Boundary-induced dynamics in one-dimensional topological systems and memory effects of edge modes

Dynamics induced by a change of boundary conditions reveals rate-dependent signatures associated with topological properties in one-dimensional Kitaev chain and SSH model. While the perturbation from a change of the boundary propagates into the bulk, the density of topological edge modes in the case of transforming to open boundary condition reaches steady states. The steady-state density depends on the transformation rate of the boundary and serves as an illustration of quantum memory effects in topological systems. Moreover, while a link is physically broken as the boundary condition changes, some correlation functions can remain finite across the broken link and keep a record of the initial condition. By testing those phenomena in the non-topological regimes of the two models, none of the interesting signatures of memory effects can be observed. Our results thus contrast the importance of topological properties in boundary-induced dynamics.