Universal interaction-based manipulation of quantum synchronization in spin oscillator networks
Phys. Rev. B 113, 054306 – Published 12 February, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/46my-41ym
Abstract
Quantum synchronization (QS) in open many-body systems offers a promising route for controlling collective quantum dynamics, yet existing manipulation schemes often rely on dissipation engineering, which distorts limit cycles, lacks scalability, and is strongly system-dependent. Here, we propose a universal and scalable method for continuously tuning QS—from maximal synchronization under isotropic interactions to complete synchronization blockade (QSB) under fully anisotropic coupling in spin oscillator networks. Our approach preserves intrinsic limit cycles and applies to both few-body and macroscopic systems. Using two spin-1 oscillators as an example, we analytically show that QS arises solely from spin flip-flop processes and their higher-order correlations, while anisotropic interactions induce nonsynchronizing coherence. However, unlike in finite spin-1 systems, in macroscopic spin networks we find that QSB can occur even when spin flip-flop processes are present. In this regime, anisotropic interactions actively suppress synchronization, demonstrating that the emergence of QSB is not merely a trivial consequence of the absence of synchronizing channels. The proposed mechanism is experimentally feasible using XYZ interactions and optical pumping and provides a general framework for programmable synchronization control in complex quantum networks and dynamical phases of matter.
