Paweł Caputa

We introduce a new optimization procedure for Euclidean path integrals, which compute wave functionals in conformal field theories (CFTs). We optimize the background metric in the space on which the path integration is performed. Equivalently, this is interpreted as a position-dependent UV cutoff. For two-dimensional CFT vacua, we find the optimized metric is given by that of a hyperbolic space, and we interpret this as a continuous limit of the conjectured relation between tensor networks and A

We formulate Nielsen's geometric approach to circuit complexity in the context of two-dimensional conformal field theories, where series of conformal transformations are interpreted as "unitary circuits" built from energy-momentum tensor gates. We show that the complexity functional in this setup can be written as the Polyakov action of two-dimensional gravity or, equivalently, as the geometric action on the coadjoint orbits of the Virasoro group. This way, we argue that gravity sets the rules f

In this work, we find that the complexity of quantum many-body states, defined as a spread in the Krylov basis, may serve as a probe that distinguishes topological phases of matter. We illustrate this analytically in one of the representative examples, the Su-Schrieffer-Heeger model, finding that spread complexity becomes constant in the topological phase. Moreover, in the same setup, we analyze exactly solvable quench protocols where the evolution of the spread complexity shows distinct dynamic

We explore a conformal field theoretic interpretation of the holographic entanglement of purification, which is defined as the minimal area of the entanglement wedge cross section. We argue that, in AdS_{3}/CFT_{2}, the holographic entanglement of purification agrees with the entanglement entropy for a purified state, obtained from a special Weyl transformation, called path-integral optimizations. By definition, this special purified state has minimal path-integral complexity. We confirm this cl

A bstract A number of recent works have argued that quantum complexity, a well-known concept in computer science that has re-emerged recently in the context of the physics of black holes, may be used as an efficient probe of novel phenomena such as quantum chaos and even quantum phase transitions. In this article, we provide further support for the latter, using a 1-dimensional p-wave superconductor — the Kitaev chain — as a prototype of a system displaying a topological phase transition. The Ha

In this paper we investigate measures of chaos and entanglement in rational conformal field theories in 1 + 1 dimensions. First, we derive a formula for the late time value of the out-of-time-ordered correlators for this class of theories. Our universal result can be expressed as a particular combination of the modular <f>S</f>-matrix elements known as anyon monodromy scalar. Next, in the explicit setup of an <f>SU(N)k</f> Wess–Zumino–Witten model, we compare the late tim

In this work we consider the time evolution of charged R\'enyi entanglement entropies after exciting the vacuum with local fermionic operators. In order to explore the information contained in charged R\'enyi entropies, we perform computations of their excess due to the operator excitation in two-dimensional conformal field theory, free fermionic field theories in various dimensions as well as holography. In the analysis we focus on the dependence on the entanglement charge, the chemical potenti

We show that in $1+1$ dimensional conformal field theories, exciting a state with a local operator increases the R\'enyi entanglement entropies by a constant which is the same for every member of the conformal family. Hence, it is an intrinsic parameter that characterizes local operators from the perspective of quantum entanglement. In rational conformal field theories this constant corresponds to the logarithm of the quantum dimension of the primary operator. We provide several detailed example

A bstract Quantifying complexity in quantum systems has witnessed a surge of interest in recent years, with Krylov-based measures such as Krylov complexity ( C K ) and Spread complexity ( C S ) gaining prominence. In this study, we investigate their interplay by considering the complexity of states represented by density matrix operators . After setting up the problem, we analyze a handful of analytical and numerical examples spanning generic two-dimensional Hilbert spaces, qubit states, quantum

We compute the mutual information between finite intervals in two non-compact 2d CFTs in the thermofield double formulation after one of them has been locally perturbed by a primary operator at some time tω in the large c limit. We determine the time scale, called the scrambling time, at which the mutual information vanishes and the original entanglement between the thermofield double gets destroyed by the perturbation. We provide a holographic description in terms of a free falling particle in

Global quantum quench with a finite quench rate which crosses critical points is known to lead to universal scaling of correlation functions as functions of the quench rate. In this work, we explore scaling properties of the entanglement entropy of a subsystem in a harmonic chain during a mass quench which asymptotes to finite constant values at early and late times and for which the dynamics is exactly solvable. When the initial state is the ground state, we find that for large enough subsystem

A bstract The $$ T\overline{T} $$ <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"> <mml:mi>T</mml:mi> <mml:mover> <mml:mi>T</mml:mi> <mml:mo>¯</mml:mo> </mml:mover> </mml:math> deformation can be formulated as a dynamical change of coordinates. We establish and generalize this relation to curved spaces by coupling the undeformed theory to 2d gravity. For curved space the dynamical change of coordinates is supplemented by a dynamical Weyl transformation. We also sharpen the holographic c

In this paper, we use entanglement entropy as a tool to explore the universal properties of conformal field theories (CFTs) dual to extremal BTZ black holes. We demonstrate that the entanglement entropies computed in the CFTs at the boundary of the extremal BTZ and the boundary of the near-horizon limit of the extremal BTZ are in perfect agreement and have the form appropriate to a two-dimensional CFT with only the chiral part excited and the antichiral in the ground state. Furthermore, we analy