[论文解读] Metastable confinement in Rydberg lattice gauge theories

Yaohua Li, Devendra Singh Bhakuni+2 more|arXiv (Cornell University)|Feb 26, 2026

Cold Atom Physics and Bose-Einstein Condensates被引用 0

一句话总结

论文在用Rydberg原子阵列实现的1D U(1)晶格规范理论中识别出一个亚稳禁闭态，显示共振的字符串断裂以及Floquet驱动的共振。

ABSTRACT

Confinement and string breaking are two fundamental phenomena in gauge theories. Signatures of both are currently pursued in quantum-simulator experiments, opening a new angle on strongly interacting dynamics of gauge fields out of equilibrium, complementary to traditional particle-physics settings. In this work, we report the emergence of metastable confinement dynamics in a U(1) lattice gauge theory, originating from the competition between string tension and four-Fermi coupling - a competition that naturally arises in Rydberg atom arrays. We show that the initial string state can be resonantly melted through controlled energy matching, a phenomenon we identify as resonant string breaking. We demonstrate this mechanism for both static and Floquet-driven systems, where periodic modulation generates a spectrum of tunable sideband resonances. Our work provides new insights into the mechanisms of confinement and string breaking driven by long-range interactions and time-dependent fields, which are available in current quantum simulators on a variety of platforms.

研究动机与目标

• 探索通过Rydberg原子阵列实现的U(1)晶格规范理论中的禁闭与字符串断裂。
• 鉴定由字符串张力与四费米耦合之间竞争导致的亚稳禁闭。
• 通过能量匹配条件在相互作用与失谐之间实现的共振性字符串断裂。
• 将框架扩展到具可调副带共振的Floquet驱动动力学。

提出的方法

• 将Rydberg阻塞映射到高斯定律以实现U(1)晶格规范理论。
• 使用哈密顿量 H = (Omega/2) ∑_j σ_j^x - ∑_j [Delta + (-1)^j delta_0] n_j + ∑_{j<k} V_{j,k} n_j n_k，V_jk ~ C6/r_jk^6。
• 引入最近邻之外的相互作用与错位失谐以产生四费米耦合V2和字符串张力delta_0。
• 制备并演化Néel(字符串)态并监测最近邻相关量O_ZZ作为诊断量。
• 识别在条件(n+1)V2 = n(Delta+delta_0)下产生的共振，从而诱导字符串断裂。
• 将分析扩展到通过全局失谐Delta的频率ω的Floquet驱动。

Figure 1: Schematics of LGTs description and resonant string breaking of Rydberg atom arrays. (a) Mapping between Rydberg atoms (with $|0\rangle,|1\rangle$ being the ground and Rydberg state, respectively) and a U(1) quantum link model. The Néel states map into string states. (b) Schematic of stable

实验结果

研究问题

• RQ1 在用Rydberg阵列实现的U(1)晶格规范理论中，哪些机制会产生亚稳禁闭？
• RQ2 当字符串张力与四费米耦合之间产生共振时，如何诱导字符串断裂？
• RQ3 Floquet调制如何改变共振结构以及对动力学的可控性？

主要发现

• 当初始字符串态处于谱的中部时，会出现亚稳禁闭，导致缓慢、受限的动力学，随后才会热化。
• 在条件(n+1)V2 = n(Delta+delta_0)下发生共振融化，产生孤立的夸克-反夸克岛，以及在共振子空间内的遍历性动力学。
• 亚稳态区域内的时间平均最近邻相关量O_ZZ偏离热平衡值，显示出非平凡的近热态样行为。
• Floquet驱动产生主共振周围的副带共振谱（±m omega），实现可控调节并出现避免交叉（非可积动力学）的证据。
• 初始Néel态与本征态之间的最大重叠在共振处下降，标志着混合与共振字符串断裂。

Figure 2: Thermal equilibrium and time average of local observables. (a) Upper panel: the effective temperature of the initial state. Lower panel: the thermal expectation values of the nearest-neighbor correlation $\hat{O}_{ZZ}$ in the blockade subspace (red, therm. 1) and in the resonant subspace (