Related papers: Quantum caustics and the hierarchy of light cones …
Caustics occur widely in dynamics and take on shapes classified by catastrophe theory. At finite wavelengths they produce interference patterns containing networks of vortices (phase singularities). Here we investigate caustics in quantized…
As part of the quest to uncover universal features of quantum dynamics, we study catastrophes that form in simple many-body wave functions after a quench, focusing on two-mode systems that include the two-site Bose Hubbard model, and under…
We describe a new class of nonequilibrium quantum many-body phenomena in the form of networks of caustics that dominate the many-body wavefunction in the semiclassical regime following a sudden quench. It includes the light cone-like…
A second order phase transition induced by a rapid quench can lock out topological defects with densities far exceeding their equilibrium expectation values. We use quantum kinetic theory to show that this mechanism, originally postulated…
The infinite superpositions of random plane waves are known to be threaded with vortex line singularities which form complicated tangles and obey strict topological rules. We observe that within these structures a timelike axis appears to…
It is now widely accepted that quenches through the critical region of quantum phase transitions result in post-transition states populated with topological defects -- analogs of the classical topological defects. However, consequences of…
Quantum physics is a linear theory, so it is somewhat puzzling that it can underlie very complex systems such as digital computers and life. This paper investigates how this is possible. Physically, such complex systems are necessarily…
Quenches in an ion chain can create coherent superpositions of motional states across the linear-zigzag structural transition. The procedure has been described in [Phys. Rev. A 84, 063821 (2011)] and makes use of spin-dependent forces, so…
Caustics are optical phenomena which occur when a family of rays creates an envelope of divergent intensity. Here we show that caustic surfaces also appear when a real or complex field is mapped to its order parameter manifold. We study…
Quantum Heisenberg spin chains with random couplings and spin sizes are studied using a real-space renormalization group technique. These systems belong to a new universality class of disordered quantum spin systems realized in {\it e.g.}…
Quantum cluster theories are a set of approaches for the theory of correlated and disordered lattice systems, which treat correlations within the cluster explicitly, and correlations at longer length scales either perturbatively or within a…
We use a master equation to study the dynamics of two coupled macroscopic quantum systems (e.g.\ a Josephson junction made of two Bose-Einstein condensates or two spin states of an ensemble of trapped ions) subject to a weak continuous…
A quantum spin-$\frac{1}{2}$ chain with an axial symmetry is normally described by quasiparticles associated with the spins oriented along the axis of rotation. Kinetic constraints can enrich such a description by setting apart different…
We study the dynamics of the relative phase of a bilayer of two-dimensional superfluids after the two superfluids have been decoupled. We find that on short time scales the relative phase shows "light cone" like dynamics and creates a…
The emergence of coherent rotating structures is a phenomenon characteristic of both classical and quantum 2D turbulence. In this work we show theoretically that the coherent vortex structures that emerge in decaying 2D quantum turbulence…
We study the response to sudden local perturbations of highly excited Quantum Ising Spin Chains. The key quantity encoding this response is the overlap between time-dependent wave functions, which we write as a two-times Loschmidt echo. Its…
Catastrophes are at the heart of many fascinating optical phenomena. The rainbow, for example, is a ray catastrophe where light rays become infinitely intense. The wave nature of light resolves the infinities of ray catastrophes while…
We study non-equilibrium dynamics for an ensemble of tilted one-dimensional atomic Bose-Hubbard chains after a sudden quench to the vicinity of the transition point of the Ising paramagnetic to anti-ferromagnetic quantum phase transition.…
We present a detailed theory of spectacular semiclassical catastrophes happening during the time evolution of a kicked quantum rotor (Phys.Rev. Lett. {\bf 87}, 163601 (2001)). Both two- and three-dimensional rotational systems are analyzed.…
Caustics are singularities that occur naturally in optical, hydrodynamic and quantum waves, giving rise to high amplitude patterns that can be described using catastrophe theory. In this paper we study caustics in a statistical field theory…