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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Preprint |
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2025
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://arxiv.org/abs/2505.09607 |
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| _version_ | 1866908363642634240 |
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| author | Luo, De Surace, Federica Maria De, Arinjoy Lerose, Alessio Bennewitz, Elizabeth R. Ware, Brayden Schuckert, Alexander Davoudi, Zohreh Gorshkov, Alexey V. Katz, Or Monroe, Christopher |
| author_facet | Luo, De Surace, Federica Maria De, Arinjoy Lerose, Alessio Bennewitz, Elizabeth R. Ware, Brayden Schuckert, Alexander Davoudi, Zohreh Gorshkov, Alexey V. Katz, Or Monroe, Christopher |
| contents | The liquid-vapor transition is a classic example of a discontinuous (first-order) phase transition. Such transitions underlie many phenomena in cosmology, nuclear and particle physics, and condensed-matter physics. They give rise to long-lived metastable states, whose decay can be driven by either thermal or quantum fluctuations. Yet, direct experimental observations of how these states collapse into a stable phase remain elusive in the quantum regime. Here, we use a trapped-ion quantum simulator to observe the real-time dynamics of ``bubble nucleation'' induced by quantum fluctuations. Bubbles are localized domains of the stable phase which spontaneously form, or nucleate, and expand as the system is driven across a discontinuous quantum phase transition. Implementing a mixed-field Ising spin model with tunable and time-dependent interactions, we track the microscopic evolution of the metastable state as the Hamiltonian parameters are varied in time with various speeds, bringing the system out of equilibrium. Site-resolved measurements reveal the emergence and evolution of finite-size quantum bubbles, providing direct insight into the mechanism by which the metastable phase decays. We also identify nonequilibrium scaling behavior near the transition, consistent with a generalized Kibble-Zurek mechanism. Our results demonstrate the power of quantum simulators to probe out-of-equilibrium many-body physics, including quantum bubble nucleation, a key feature of discontinuous quantum phase transitions, with application to studies of matter formation in the early universe. |
| format | Preprint |
| id |
arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2505_09607 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | Quantum simulation of bubble nucleation across a quantum phase transition Luo, De Surace, Federica Maria De, Arinjoy Lerose, Alessio Bennewitz, Elizabeth R. Ware, Brayden Schuckert, Alexander Davoudi, Zohreh Gorshkov, Alexey V. Katz, Or Monroe, Christopher Quantum Physics Quantum Gases High Energy Physics - Lattice High Energy Physics - Phenomenology The liquid-vapor transition is a classic example of a discontinuous (first-order) phase transition. Such transitions underlie many phenomena in cosmology, nuclear and particle physics, and condensed-matter physics. They give rise to long-lived metastable states, whose decay can be driven by either thermal or quantum fluctuations. Yet, direct experimental observations of how these states collapse into a stable phase remain elusive in the quantum regime. Here, we use a trapped-ion quantum simulator to observe the real-time dynamics of ``bubble nucleation'' induced by quantum fluctuations. Bubbles are localized domains of the stable phase which spontaneously form, or nucleate, and expand as the system is driven across a discontinuous quantum phase transition. Implementing a mixed-field Ising spin model with tunable and time-dependent interactions, we track the microscopic evolution of the metastable state as the Hamiltonian parameters are varied in time with various speeds, bringing the system out of equilibrium. Site-resolved measurements reveal the emergence and evolution of finite-size quantum bubbles, providing direct insight into the mechanism by which the metastable phase decays. We also identify nonequilibrium scaling behavior near the transition, consistent with a generalized Kibble-Zurek mechanism. Our results demonstrate the power of quantum simulators to probe out-of-equilibrium many-body physics, including quantum bubble nucleation, a key feature of discontinuous quantum phase transitions, with application to studies of matter formation in the early universe. |
| title | Quantum simulation of bubble nucleation across a quantum phase transition |
| topic | Quantum Physics Quantum Gases High Energy Physics - Lattice High Energy Physics - Phenomenology |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2505.09607 |