- Letter
Quantum boomerang effect in systems without time-reversal symmetry
Phys. Rev. B 105, L180202 – Published 26 May, 2022
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.105.L180202
Abstract
In an Anderson localized system, a quantum particle with a nonzero initial velocity returns, on average, to its origin. This recently discovered behavior is known as the quantum boomerang effect. Time-reversal invariance was initially thought to be a necessary condition for the existence of this phenomenon. We theoretically analyze the impact of the symmetry breaking on the phenomenon using a one-dimensional system with a spin-orbit coupling and show that the time-reversal invariance is not necessary for the boomerang effect to occur. We explain this behavior giving sufficient symmetry conditions for the boomerang effect to occur when time-reversal symmetry is broken.
