Thermalization dynamics of a gauge theory on a quantum simulator

TLDR

Gauge theories form the foundation of modern physics, with applications ranging from elementary particle physics and early‑universe cosmology to condensed matter systems. The study performs quantum simulations of the unitary dynamics of a U(1) symmetric gauge field theory to demonstrate emergent irreversible behavior. The dynamics are encoded in a one‑dimensional Bose‑Hubbard simulator coupling fermionic matter to dynamical gauge fields, and the authors investigated global quantum quenches that equilibrate to a thermal‑ensemble‑like steady state. The simulations reveal emergent irreversible behavior and suggest that the platform could probe phenomena like Schwinger pair production and string breaking, paving the way for higher‑dimensional gauge theory simulations on quantum synthetic matter devices.

Abstract

Gauge theories form the foundation of modern physics, with applications ranging from elementary particle physics and early-universe cosmology to condensed matter systems. We perform quantum simulations of the unitary dynamics of a U(1) symmetric gauge field theory and demonstrate emergent irreversible behavior. The highly constrained gauge theory dynamics are encoded in a one-dimensional Bose-Hubbard simulator, which couples fermionic matter fields through dynamical gauge fields. We investigated global quantum quenches and the equilibration to a steady state well approximated by a thermal ensemble. Our work may enable the investigation of elusive phenomena, such as Schwinger pair production and string breaking, and paves the way for simulating more complex, higher-dimensional gauge theories on quantum synthetic matter devices.