Role of mixed permutation symmetry sectors in the thermodynamic limit of critical three-level Lipkin-Meshkov-Glick atom models
Abstract
We introduce the notion of mixed symmetry quantum phase transition (MSQPT) as singularities in the transformation of the lowest-energy state properties of a system of identical particles inside each permutation symmetry sector μ, when some Hamiltonian control parameters λ are varied. We use a three-level Lipkin-Meshkov-Glick model, with U(3) dynamical symmetry, to exemplify our construction. After reviewing the construction of U(3) unitary irreducible representations using Young tableaux and the Gelfand basis, we first study the case of a finite number N of three-level atoms, showing that some precursors (fidelity susceptibility, level population, etc.) of MSQPTs appear in all permutation symmetry sectors. Using coherent (quasiclassical) states of U(3) as variational states, we compute the lowest-energy density for each sector μ in the thermodynamic N→∞ limit. Extending the control parameter space by μ, the phase diagram exhibits four distinct quantum phases in the λ-μ plane that coexist at a quadruple point. The ground state of the whole system belongs to the fully symmetric sector μ=1 and shows a fourfold degeneracy, due to the spontaneous breakdown of the parity symmetry of the Hamiltonian. The restoration of this discrete symmetry leads to the formation of four-component Schrödinger cat states.
Read the paper
Related studies
- Chaos and quantum thermalization
- The Dalton quantum chemistry program system
- Cord Blood Leptin and Adiponectin as Predictors of Adiposity in Children at 3 Years of Age: A Prospective Cohort Study
- Quantitative metabolomics by H-NMR and LC-MS/MS confirms altered metabolic pathways in diabetes
- Stable adiabatic quantum batteries
- A novel self-lipid antigen targets human T cells against CD1c(+) leukemias
Go deeper in Evidence Hub
Evidence Hub adds a study data sheet (design, sample size, evidence level, key numbers), an AI summary and a chat grounded in the paper's text.