We propose a topological Euler number to characterize nontrivial topological phases of gapped fermionic systems, which originates from the Gauss-Bonnet theorem on the Riemannian structure of Bloch states established by the real part of the quantum geometric tensor in momentum space. Meanwhile, the imaginary part of the geometric tensor corresponds to the Berry curvature which leads to the Chern number characterization. We discuss the topological numbers induced by the geometric tensor analytically in a general two-band model. As an example, we show that the zero-temperature phase diagram of a transverse field XY spin chain can be distinguished by the Euler characteristic number of the Bloch states manifold in a (1+1)-dimensional Bloch momentum space.
Whether a doped hole propagates as a Bloch wave or not is an important issue of doped Mott physics. Here we examine this problem based on the quasiparticle spectral weight $Z$ distribution, calculated by density matrix renormalization group (DMRG). By tuning the anisotropy of a two-leg $t$-$J$ ladder without closing the background spin gap, the $Z$ distribution unambiguously reveals a transition of the single hole state from a Bloch wave to a novel one with spontaneous translational symmetry breaking. We further establish a direct connection of such a transition with a nonlocal phase string en…
In this work we consider general fermion systems in two spatial dimensions, both with and without charge conservation symmetry, which realize a nontrivial fermionic topological order with only Abelian anyons. We address the question of precisely how these quantum phases differ from their bosonic counterparts, both in terms of their edge physics and in the way one would identify them in numerics. As in previous works, we answer these questions by studying the theory obtained after gauging the global fermion parity symmetry, which turns out to have a special and simple structure. Using this stru…
We use holography to compute spectral functions of certain fermionic operators in three different finite-density, zero-temperature states of ABJM theory with a broken U(1) symmetry. In each of the three states, dual to previously studied domain wall solutions of four-dimensional gauged supergravity, we find that the fermionic operators have gapped spectra. In one case the gap can be traced to the small charge of the fermions, while in the other cases it is due to a particular interaction that mixes particles and holes.
In terms of spinless fermions and spin waves, we describe magnetic properties of a spin-1/2 ferromagnetic-antiferromagnetic bond-alternating chain which behaves as a Haldane-gap antiferromagnet. On one hand, we employ the Jordan-Wigner transformation and treat the fermionic Hamiltonian within the Hartree-Fock approximation. On the other hand, we employ the Holstein-Primakoff transformation and modify the conventional spin-wave theory so as to restore the sublattice symmetry. We calculate the excitation gap, the specific heat, the magnetic susceptibility, magnetization curves, and the nuclear s…
There can exist topological obstructions to continuously deforming a gapped Hamiltonian for free fermions into a trivial form without closing the gap. These topological obstructions are closely related to obstructions to the existence of exponentially localized Wannier functions. We show that by taking two copies of a gapped, free fermionic system with complex conjugate Hamiltonians, it is always possible to overcome these obstructions. This allows us to write the ground state in matrix product form using Grassman-valued bond variables, and show insensitivity of the ground state density matrix…
We propose the concept of fermion condensation in bosonic topological orders in two spatial dimensions. Fermion condensation can be realized as gapped domain walls between bosonic and fermionic topological orders, which are thought of as a real-space phase transitions from bosonic to fermionic topological orders. This generalizes the previous idea of understanding boson condensation as gapped domain walls between bosonic topological orders. We show that generic fermion condensation obeys a Hierarchy Principle by which it can be decomposed into a boson condensation followed by a minimal fermion…
We investigate symmetry-preserving gapped boundary of (2+1)D topological phases with global symmetry, which can be either bosonic or fermionic. We develop a general algebraic description for gapped boundary condition for symmetry-enriched or fermionic topological phases, extending the framework of Lagrangian algebra anyon for bosonic phases without symmetry. We then focus on application to the case with U(1) symmetry. We derive new obstructions to symmetry-preserving gapped boundary for U(1)$^f$-symmetric (2+1)D fermionic topological phases, which are beyond chiral central charge $c_-$ and ele…
Topological phases of matter are usually realized in deconfined phases of gauge theories. In this context, confined phases with strongly fluctuating gauge fields seem to be irrelevant to the physics of topological phases. For example, the low-energy theory of the two-dimensional (2D) toric code model (i.e. the deconfined phase of $\mathbb{Z}_2$ gauge theory) is a $U(1)\times U(1)$ Chern-Simons theory in which gauge charges (i.e., $e$ and $m$ particles) are deconfined and the gauge fields are gapped, while the confined phase is topologically trivial. In this paper, we point out a new route to c…
$2+1$D bosonic topological orders can be characterized by the $S,T$ matrices that encode the statistics of topological excitations. In particular, the $S,T$ matrices can be used to systematically obtain the gapped boundaries of bosonic topological orders. Such an approach, however, does not naively apply to fermionic topological orders (FTOs). In this work, we propose a systematic approach to obtain the gapped boundaries of $2+1$D abelian FTOs. The main trick is to construct a bosonic extension in which the fermionic excitation is "condensed" to form the associated FTOs. Here we choose the par…
We analyse in detail the effect of non-trivial band topology on the area law behaviour of the entanglement entropy in Kitaev's honeycomb model. By mapping the translationally invariant 2D spin model into 1D fermionic subsystems, we identify those subsystems responsible for universal entanglement contributions in the gapped phases and those responsible for critical entanglement scaling in the gapless phases. For the gapped phases we analytically show how the topological edge states contribute to the entanglement entropy and provide a universal lower bound for it. For the gapless semi-metallic p…
We study gapped boundaries characterized by "fermionic condensates" in 2+1 d topological order. Mathematically, each of these condensates can be described by a super commutative Frobenius algebra. We systematically obtain the species of excitations at the gapped boundary/ junctions, and study their endomorphisms (ability to trap a Majorana fermion) and fusion rules, and generalized the defect Verlinde formula to a twisted version. We illustrate these results with explicit examples. We also connect these results with topological defects in super modular invariant CFTs. To render our discussion …
Recently, there is a considerable study on gapped symmetric phases of bosons that do not break any symmetry. Even without symmetry breaking, the bosons can still be in many exotic new states of matter, such as symmetry-protected trivial (SPT) phases which are short-range entangled and symmetry-enriched topological (SET) phases which are long-range entangled. It is well-known that non-interacting fermionic topological insulators are SPT states protected by time-reversal symmetry and U(1) fermion number conservation symmetry. In this paper, we construct three-dimensional exotic phases of bosons …
Motivated by recent experiments on the material Ba_3NiSb_2O_9 we consider a spin-one quantum antiferromagnet on a triangular lattice with the Heisenberg bilinear and biquadratic exchange interactions and a single-ion anisotropy. Using a fermionic "triplon" representation for spins, we study the phase diagram within mean field theory. In addition to a fully gapped spin-liquid ground state, we find a state where one gapless triplon mode with Fermi surface coexists with d + id topological pairing of the other triplons. Despite the existence of a Fermi surface, this ground state has fully gapped b…
It is possible to describe fermionic phases of matter and spin-topological field theories in 2+1d in terms of bosonic "shadow" theories, which are obtained from the original theory by "gauging fermionic parity". The fermionic/spin theories are recovered from their shadow by a process of fermionic anyon condensation: gauging a one-form symmetry generated by quasi-particles with fermionic statistics. We apply the formalism to theories which admit gapped boundary conditions. We obtain Turaev-Viro-like and Levin-Wen-like constructions of fermionic phases of matter. We describe the group structure …
We study lattice constructions of gapped fermionic phases of matter. We show that the construction of fermionic Symmetry Protected Topological orders by Gu and Wen has a hidden dependence on a discrete spin structure on the Euclidean space-time. The spin structure is needed to resolve ambiguities which are otherwise present. An identical ambiguity is shown to arise in the fermionic analog of the string-net construction of 2D topological orders. We argue that the need for a spin structure is a general feature of lattice models with local fermionic degrees of freedom and is a lattice analog of t…
We study the uniform time reversal invariant $U(1)$ quantum spin liquid (QSL) with low energy fermionic quasi-particles for rare earth pyrochlore magnets and explore its magnetic instability employing an augmented fermionic parton mean field theory approach. Self consistent calculations stabilise an uniform $U(1)$ QSL with both gapped and gapless parton excitations as well as fractionalised magnetically ordered phases in an experimentally relevant part of the phase diagram near the classical phase boundaries of the magnetically ordered phases. The gapped QSL has a band-structure with a non-zer…
Boundary topological orders of (4+1)d fermionic $\mathbb{Z}_{2N}^{\mathrm{F}}$ SPT states
Yale University（耶鲁大学）；London Institute for Mathematical Sciences, Royal Institution（伦敦数学科学研究所，皇家学会）；Center of Mathematical Sciences and Applications, Harvard University（哈佛大学数学科学及应用中心）
We study the properties of the entanglement spectrum in gapped non-interacting non-Hermitian systems, and its relation to the topological properties of the system Hamiltonian. Two different families of entanglement Hamiltonians can be defined in non-Hermitian systems, depending on whether we consider only right (or equivalently only left) eigenstates or a combination of both left and right eigenstates. We show that their entanglement spectra can still be computed efficiently, as in the Hermitian limit. We discuss how symmetries of the Hamiltonian map into symmetries of the entanglement spectru…
We study gapped systems with anomalous time-reversal symmetry and global gravitational anomaly in three and four spacetime dimensions. These systems describe topological order on the boundary of bosonic Symmetry Protected Topological (SPT) Phases. Our description of these phases is via the recent cobordism proposal for their classification. In particular, the behavior of these systems is determined by the geometry of Stiefel-Whitney classes. We discuss electric and magnetic operators defined by these classes, and new types of Wilson lines and surfaces that sit on their boundary. The lines desc…
We demonstrate that hidden long range order is always present in the gapped phases of interacting fermionic systems on one dimensional lattices. It is captured by correlation functions of appropriate nonlocal charge and/or spin operators, which remain asymptotically finite. The corresponding microscopic orders are classified. The results are confirmed by DMRG numerical simulation of the phase diagram of the extended Hubbard model, and of a Haldane insulator phase.
We study a three-components fermionic gas loaded in a one-dimensional optical trap at half-filling. We find that the system is fully gapped and may order into 8 possible phases: four 2$k_F$ atomic density wave and spin-Peierls phases with all possible relative $π$ phases shifts between the three species. We find that trionic excitations are unstable toward the decay into pairs of kinks carrying a {\it fractional} number, $Q=3/2$, of atoms. These sesquions eventually condense upon small doping and are described by a Luttinger liquid. We finally discuss the phase diagram of a three component mix…
Quasiparticle excitations in $3+1$ dimensions can be either bosons or fermions. In this work, we introduce the notion of fermionic loop excitations in $3+1$ dimensional topological phases. Specifically, we construct a new many-body lattice invariant of gapped Hamiltonians, the loop self-statistics, that distinguishes two bosonic topological orders that both superficially resemble $3+1$ d ${\mathbb{Z}}_2$ gauge theory coupled to fermionic charged matter. The first has fermionic charges and bosonic ${\mathbb{Z}}_2$ gauge flux loops (FcBl) and is just the ordinary fermionic toric code. The second…
We provide a framework to compute the dynamics of massive Dirac fermions using holography. To this end we consider two bulk Dirac fermions that are coupled via a Yukawa interaction and propagate on a gravitational background in which a mass deformation is introduced. Moreover, we discuss the incorporation of this approach in semiholography. The resulting undoped fermionic spectral functions indeed show that the Yukawa coupling induces a gap in the holographic spectrum, whereas the semiholographic extension is in general gapped but additionally contains a quantum critical point at which the eff…
We perform a unitary renormalization group (URG) study of the 1D fermionic Hubbard model. The formalism generates a family of effective Hamiltonians and many-body eigenstates arranged holographically across the tensor network from UV to IR. The URG is realized as a quantum circuit, leading to the entanglement holographic mapping (EHM) tensor network description. A topological $Θ$-term of the projected Hilbert space of the degrees of freedom at the Fermi surface are shown to govern the nature of RG flow towards either the gapless Tomonaga-Luttinger liquid or gapped quantum liquid phases. This r…
We demonstrate that 3+1-dimensional quantum electrodynamics with fermionic charges, fermionic monopoles, and fermionic dyons arises at the edge of a 4+1-dimensional gapped state with short-range entanglement. This state cannot be adiabatically connected to a product state, even in the absence of any symmetry. This provides independent evidence for the obstruction found by arXiv:1306.3238 to a 3+1-dimensional short-distance completion of all-fermion electrodynamics. The non-triviality of the bulk is demonstrated by a novel fermion number anomaly.
Symmetry protected topological (SPT) phases are gapped quantum phases which host symmetry-protected gapless edge excitations. On the other hand, the edge states can be gapped by spontaneously breaking symmetry. We show that topological defects on the symmetry-broken edge cannot proliferate due to their fractional statistics. A gapped symmetric boundary, however, can be achieved between an SPT phase and certain fractionalized phases by condensing the bound state of a topological defect and an anyon. We demonstrate this by two examples in two dimensions: an exactly solvable model for the boundar…
We present a fully many-body formulation of topological invariants for various topological phases of fermions protected by antiunitary symmetry, which does not refer to single particle wave functions. For example, we construct the many-body $\mathbb{Z}_2$ topological invariant for time-reversal symmetric topological insulators in two spatial dimensions, which is a many-body counterpart of the Kane-Mele $\mathbb{Z}_2$ invariant written in terms of single-particle Bloch wave functions. We show that an important ingredient for the construction of the many-body topological invariants is a fermioni…
Capturing the interplay between electronic correlations and many-particle entanglement requires a unified framework for Hamiltonian and eigenbasis renormalization. In this work, we apply the unitary renormalization group (URG) scheme developed in a companion work (Ref.[1]) to the study of two archetypal models of stongly correlated lattice electrons, one with translation invariance and one without. We obtain detailed insight into the emergence of various gapless and gapped phases of quantum electronic matter by computing effective Hamiltonians as well as entanglement signatures through their r…
We report on the realization of a quantum degenerate atomic Fermi gas in an optical lattice. Fermi surfaces of noninteracting fermions are studied in a three-dimensional lattice. Using a Feshbach resonance, we observe a coupling of the Bloch bands in the strongly interacting regime.
Universal Decay of Mutual Information and Conditional Mutual Information in Gapped Pure- and Mixed-State Quantum Matter
Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics（Perimeter理论物理研究所）；Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Waterloo（滑铁卢大学物理与天文系）；Department of Physics, National University of Singapore（新加坡国立大学物理系）
Quantum phases with different orders exist with or without breaking the symmetry of the system. Recently, a classification of gapped quantum phases which do not break time reversal, parity or on-site unitary symmetry has been given for 1D spin systems in [X. Chen, Z.-C. Gu, and X.-G. Wen, Phys. Rev. B \textbf{83}, 035107 (2011); arXiv:1008.3745]. It was found that, such symmetry protected topological (SPT) phases are labeled by the projective representations of the symmetry group which can be viewed as a symmetry fractionalization. In this paper, we extend the classification of 1D gapped phase…
Strong interactions can give rise to new fermionic symmetry protected topological phases which have no analogs in free fermion systems. As an example, we have systematically studied a spinless fermion model with $U(1)$ charge conservation and time reversal symmetry on a three-leg ladder using density-matrix renormalization group. In the non-interacting limit, there are no topological phases. Turning on interactions, we found two gapped phases. One is trivial and is adiabatically connected to a band insulator, while another one is a nontrivial symmetry protected topological phase resulting from…
Superstrip Algebras and Nonperturbative Spectra in Fermionic Theories
Xiamen University（厦门大学）；Peng Huanwu Center for Fundamental Theory, Hefei, Anhui 230026, China（合肥基本理论彭桓武中心）；Shanghai Institute for Mathematics and Interdisciplinary Sciences (SIMIS)（上海数学与交叉学科研究院）；Korea Institute for Advanced Study（韩国高等科学院）
Deconfined quantum critical points in fermionic systems with spin-charge separation
ICFO - Institut de Ciències Fotòniques, The Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology（ICFO-光子科学研究所，巴塞罗那科学技术研究院）；Institute for Condensed Matter Physics and Complex Systems, DISAT, Politecnico di Torino（都灵理工大学DISAT凝聚态物理与复杂系统研究所）；ICREA（加泰罗尼亚高级研究院）；Institute for Theoretical Physics, University of Cologne（科隆大学理论物理研究所）；Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Institute of Quantum Control, Peter Grünberg Institut (PGI-8)（于利希研究中心有限公司量子控制研究所，彼得·格林伯格研究所（PGI-8））
The zero-temperature phase diagram of $p$-orbital two-component fermionic system loaded into a one-dimensional optical lattice is mapped out by means of analytical and numerical techniques. It is shown that the $p$-band model away from half-filling hosts various competing superconducting phases for attractive and repulsive interactions. At quarter filling, we analyze the possible formation of incompressible Mott phases and in particular for repulsive interactions, we find the occurrence of a Mott transition with the formation of fully gapped bond-ordering waves.
A projective symmetry group (PSG) has been regarded as a classification theory of spin liquids. However, it does not include a symmetry-protected topological order of fermionic spinon excitations, and thus the classification of gapped spin liquids is incomplete. We demonstrate the classification beyond PSG by utilizing the Kitaev model on the squareoctagon lattice, where two gapped spin liquids are distinguished by a topological $Z_2$ invariant. This $Z_2$ invariant can be defined solely by the time-reversal and translation symmetries on condition that the time-reversal symmetry is implemented…
We derive a Kubo-like formula for the thermal Hall conductance of a 2d lattice systems which is free from ambiguities associated with the definition of energy magnetization. We use it to define a relative topological invariant of gapped 2d lattice systems at zero temperature. Up to a numerical factor, it can be identified with the difference of chiral central charges for the corresponding edge modes. This establishes the bulk-boundary correspondence for the chiral central charge. We also show that for any Local Commuting Projector Hamiltonian the relative chiral central charge vanishes, while …
We study a chain of ferromagnetic nano-particles or ferromagnetic molecule/atoms on a substrate of fully gapped superconductors. We find that under quite realistic conditions, the fermion-number-parity symmetry $Z_2^f$ can spontaneously break. In other words, such a chain can realize a 1+1D fermionic topologically ordered state and the corresponding two-fold topological degeneracy on an open chain. Such a topological degeneracy becomes the so called Majorana zero mode in the non-interacting limit. More specifically, we find that $Z_2^f$ symmetry breaking or fermionic 1+1D topological order can…
We define and study analogs of the Thouless charge pump for many-body gapped systems in dimension $D$. We show how to attach a topological invariant to a $D$-dimensional family of such systems, provided all of them have an on-site $U(1)$ symmetry. For a large class of families we argue that this topological invariant is an integer. In the case of gapped systems of free fermions in two dimensions, the invariant can be expressed in terms of the curvature of the Bloch-Berry connection. We also obtain a new formula for the Thouless charge pump in 1d which involves only static linear response and i…
We show how 1+1-dimensional fermionic symmetry-protected topological states (SPTs, i.e. nontrivial short-range entangled gapped phases of quantum matter whose boundary exhibits 't Hooft anomaly and whose bulk cannot be deformed into a trivial tensor product state under finite-depth local unitary transformations only in the presence of global symmetries), indeed can be unwound to a trivial state by enlarging the Hilbert space via adding extra degrees of freedom and suitably extending the global symmetries. The extended projective global symmetry on the boundary can become supersymmetric in a sp…
