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Finite-temperature real-time properties of magnetic polarons in two-dimensional quantum antiferromagnets

Toni Guthardt1, Markus Scheb1, Jan von Delft1,2, Fabian Grusdt1,2, and Annabelle Bohrdt1,2,3

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Phys. Rev. B 112, 205118 – Published 14 November, 2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/bm51-wq36

Abstract

Due to significant progress in quantum gas microscopy in recent years, there is a rapidly growing interest in real-space properties of single mobile dopands created in correlated antiferromagnetic (AFM) Mott insulators. However, a detailed numerical description remains challenging, even for simple toy models. As a consequence, previous numerical simulations for large systems were largely limited to T=0. To provide guidance for cold-atom experiments, numerical calculations at finite temperature are required. Here, we numerically study the real-time properties of a single mobile hole in the 2D t−J model at finite temperature and draw a comparison to features observed at T=0. We find that a three-stage process of hole motion, which was reported at T=0, is valid even at finite temperature. However, already at low temperatures, the average hole velocity at long times is not simply proportional to the spin coupling, contrary to the T=0 behavior. Comparing our finite-temperature numerical results with the experimental data from quantum gas microscopy we find a qualitative disagreement: in experiment, hole spreading speeds up with increasing J/t, while in our numerics it slows down. The latter is consistent with the numerical findings previously reported at T=0.

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Magnetic polarons at finite temperature: One-hole spectroscopy study

Toni Guthardt, Markus Scheb, Jan von Delft, Annabelle Bohrdt, and Fabian Grusdt
Phys. Rev. B 112, 205117 (2025)

Article Text

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Phys. Rev. B 112, 205118– Published 14 November, 2025
  • Received 11 April 2025
  • Revised 24 September 2025
  • Accepted 24 September 2025
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Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI.

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