Related papers: Observation of quantum superposition of topologica…
Topological defects (such as monopoles, vortex lines, or domain walls) mark locations where disparate choices of a broken symmetry vacuum elsewhere in the system lead to irreconcilable differences. They are energetically costly (the energy…
In this thesis, we study interactions between topological defects in two-dimensional spacetimes. These defects are called kinks. They are solutions of scalar field theories with localized energy which propagate without losing its shape. In…
We use laser-cooled ion Coulomb crystals in the well-controlled environment of a harmonic radiofrequency ion trap to investigate phase transitions and defect formation. Topological defects in ion Coulomb crystals (kinks) have been recently…
We study experimentally and theoretically structural defects which are formed during the transition from a laser cooled cloud to a Coulomb crystal, consisting of tens of ions in a linear radio frequency trap. We demonstrate the creation of…
We analyze the quantum phase transitions taking place in a one-dimensional transverse field Ising model with long-range couplings that decay algebraically with distance. We are interested in the Kibble-Zurek universal scaling laws emerging…
The ability of matter to be superposed at two different locations while being intrinsically connected by a quantum phase is among the most counterintuitive predictions of quantum physics. While such superpositions have been created for a…
The Kibble-Zurek mechanism provides a description of the topological structure occurring in the symmetry breaking phase transitions, which may manifest as the cosmological strings in the early universe or vortex lines in the superfulid. A…
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…
Topological defects have strong impact on both elastic and inelastic properties of materials. In this article, we investigate the possibility to controllably inject topological defects in quantum simulators of solid state lattice…
We identify persistent oscillations in a nonintegrable quantum Ising chain. In the integrable chain with nearest-neighbor interactions, the nature, origin, and decay of post-transition oscillations are tied to the Kibble-Zurek mechanism.…
The number of topological defects created in a system driven through a quantum phase transition exhibits a power-law scaling with the driving time. This universal scaling law is the key prediction of the Kibble-Zurek mechanism (KZM), and…
We experimentally probe the distribution of kink pairs resulting from driving a one-dimensional quantum Ising chain through the paramagnet-ferromagnet quantum phase transition, using a single trapped ion as a quantum simulator in momentum…
Systems passing through quantum critical points at finite rates have a finite probability of undergoing transitions between different eigenstates of the instantaneous Hamiltonian. This mechanism was proposed by Kibble as the underlying…
The crossing of a continuous phase transition results in the formation of topological defects with a density predicted by the Kibble-Zurek mechanism (KZM). We characterize the spatial distribution of point-like topological defects in the…
Topological defects (kinks) in a relativistic $\phi^{4}$ scalar field theory in $D=(1+1)$ are studied using the matrix product state tensor network. The one kink state is approximated as a matrix product state and the kink mass is…
We study the non-equilibrium dynamics of quenching through a quantum critical point in topological systems, focusing on one of their defining features: ground state degeneracies and associated topological sectors. We present the notion of…
The Kibble-Zurek mechanism (KZM) describes the non-equilibrium dynamics and topological defect formation in systems undergoing second-order phase transitions. KZM has found applications in fields such as cosmology and condensed matter…
We propose a quantum simulation of a supersymmetric lattice model using atoms trapped in a 1D configuration and interacting through a Rydberg dressed potential. The elementary excitations in the model are kinks or (in a sector with one…
When a quantum phase transition is crossed in finite time, critical slowing down leads to the breakdown of adiabatic dynamics and the formation of topological defects. The average density of defects scales with the quench rate following a…
Topologically ordered phase has emerged as one of most exciting concepts that not only broadens our understanding of phases of matter, but also has been found to have potential application in fault-tolerant quantum computation. The direct…