English

Emergence of a Luttinger Liquid Phase in an Array of Chiral Molecules

Quantum Physics 2026-02-11 v1

Abstract

We propose a robust platform for simulating chiral quantum magnetism using linear arrays of trapped asymmetric top molecules, specifically 1,2-propanediol (C3H8O2\mathrm{C_{3}H_{8}O_{2}}). By mapping the Stark-dressed rotational states onto an effective spin-1/21/2 subspace, we rigorously derive a generalized XXZXXZ Heisenberg Hamiltonian governing the underlying many-body dynamics. Unlike standard solid-state models where the topological Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya Interaction (DMI) is introduced phenomenologically, we demonstrate that DMI emerges \textit{ab initio} from the molecular stereochemistry. Specifically, the interference between the transition dipole moments of heterochiral enantiomer pairs (L-R), which breaks inversion symmetry, generates a tunable DMI that stabilizes a Chiral Luttinger Liquid phase. Through a comprehensive phase-diagram analysis, we identify an optimal experimental regime characterized by intermolecular separations of r1.5 nm r \approx 1.5~\mathrm{nm} and intermediate electric-field strengths dε/B2.5 d\varepsilon/B \approx 2.5 . In this window, the system is protected from trivial field-polarized phases and exhibits a robust gapless spin-spiral texture. Our results establish 1,2-propanediol arrays as a versatile quantum simulator, providing a direct microscopic link between molecular chirality and topological many-body phases.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2602.10002,
  title  = {Emergence of a Luttinger Liquid Phase in an Array of Chiral Molecules},
  author = {Muhammad Arsalan Ali Akbar and Bretislav Friedrich and Sabre Kais},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2602.10002},
  year   = {2026}
}