CPM Seminar

Quantum quench dynamics in spin and topological systems

Smitha Vishveshwara

Department of Physics
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Quantum quench dynamics involves the evolution of a system wherein a parameter of its underlying Hamiltonian is dynamically tuned. Such dynamics is particularly sensitive to out-of-equilibrium effects when the quench passes through a critical point associated with a phase transition and it is dominated by critical properties. Typically, the quench results in excitations or defects that respect a power-law dependence with respect to how rapidly the quench is performed, known as Kibble-Zurek behavior. Here, following an introduction in the context of simple quantum spin chains, several ramifications of this Kibble-Zurek physics will be discussed in a variety of spin systems. Quenches will also be discussed in the context of topological phases, where no local order is present but the phases are characterized by global properties; these properties have a dramatic effect on quench dynamics.