Uhlmann phase as a topological measure for one-dimensional fermion systems

We introduce the Uhlmann geometric phase as a tool to characterize symmetry-protected topological phases in one-dimensional fermion systems, such as topological insulators and superconductors. Since this phase is formulated for general mixed quantum states, it provides a way to extend topological pr...

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Detalhes bibliográficos
Autores: Viyuela, O., Rivas, A., Martín-Delgado Alcántara, Miguel Ángel
Formato: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2014
País:España
Recursos:Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM)
Repositorio:Docta Complutense
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:docta.ucm.es:20.500.14352/35600
Acesso em linha:https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/35600
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palavra-chave:53
Parallel transport
Mixed states
Insulators
Supercondunctors
Bands
Física-Modelos matemáticos
Descrição
Resumo:We introduce the Uhlmann geometric phase as a tool to characterize symmetry-protected topological phases in one-dimensional fermion systems, such as topological insulators and superconductors. Since this phase is formulated for general mixed quantum states, it provides a way to extend topological properties to finite temperature situations. We illustrate these ideas with some paradigmatic models and find that there exists a critical temperature Tc at which the Uhlmann phase goes discontinuously and abruptly to zero. This stands as a borderline between two different topological phases as a function of the temperature. Furthermore, at small temperatures we recover the usual notion of topological phase in fermion systems.