We treat the guiding-center dynamics in a varying external Maxwell field using a relativistically covariant action principle which reproduces the known Vandervoort expression for the drift velocity and extends it to curved spacetime. We derive the corresponding kinetic theory and ideal hydrodynamic theory. In contrast to conventional five-equation hydrodynamics, the guiding-center hydrodynamics needs only three equations due to a constraint on the motion across magnetic field. We argue that such a hydrodynamics is applicable to strongly coupled plasmas where kinetic theory fails.

We investigate the nature of the topological quantum phase transition between the gapless and gapped Kitaev quantum spin liquid phases away from the exactly solvable point. The transition is driven by anisotropy of the Kitaev couplings. At the critical point, the two Dirac points of the gapless Majorana modes merge, resulting in the formation of a semi-Dirac point with quadratic and linear band touching directions. We derive an effective Gross-Neveu-Yukawa-type field theory that describes the topological phase transition in the presence of additional magnetic interactions. We obtain the infrared scaling form of the propagator of the dynamical Ising order parameter field and perform a renormalization-group analysis. The universality of the transition is found to be different from that of symmetry-breaking phase transitions of semi-Dirac electrons. However, as in the electronic case, the Majorana fermions acquire an anomalous dimension, indicative of the breakdown of the fractionalized quasiparticle description.

Wavefront shaping allows focusing light through or inside strongly scattering media, but the background intensity also increases which reduces the target’s contrast. By combining transmission or deposition matrices for different regions, we construct joint operators to achieve spatially resolved control of light in diffusive systems. The eigenmode of a contrast operator can maximize the power contrast between a target and its surrounding. A difference operator enhances the power delivery to a target while avoiding the background increase. This work opens the door to coherent control of nonlocal effects in wave transport for practical applications.

A simple model of charge transport is provided by a classical particle in a random potential and a dissipative coupling to the environment. The corresponding nonequilibrium steady state (NESS) can be determined analytically when both the disorder and dissipation are weak. We use it to illuminate some foundational issues in nonequilibrium statistical mechanics. We show that at nonlinear level dissipative response sensitively depends on the system-environment coupling, and the range of validity of the linear response theory is set by this coupling. This validates the Van Kampen objection. We also show that the principle of minimum entropy production does not determine the NESS beyond linear order in the electric field, while entropy maximization fails to produce the correct NESS already at linear order.

Confining in space the equilibrium fluctuations of statistical systems with long-range correlations is known to result into effective forces on the boundaries. Here we demonstrate the occurrence of Casimir-like forces in the nonequilibrium context provided by flocking active matter. In particular, we consider a system of aligning self-propelled particles in two spatial dimensions that are transversally confined by reflecting or partially reflecting walls. We show that in the ordered flocking phase this confined active vectorial fluid is characterized by extensive boundary layers, as opposed to the finite ones usually observed in confined scalar active matter. Moreover, a finite-size, fluctuation-induced contribution to the pressure on the wall emerges, which decays slowly and algebraically upon increasing the distance between the walls. We explain our findings—which display a certain degree of universality—within a hydrodynamic description of the density and velocity fields.

Fluctuation theorems and the second law of thermodynamics are powerful relations constraining the behavior of out-of-equilibrium systems. While there exist generalizations of these relations to feedback controlled quantum systems, their applicability is limited, in particular when considering strong and continuous measurements. In this Letter, we overcome this shortcoming by deriving a novel fluctuation theorem, and the associated second law of information thermodynamics, which remain applicable in arbitrary feedback control scenarios. In our second law, the entropy production is bounded by the coarse-grained entropy production that is inferrable from the measurement outcomes, an experimentally accessible quantity that does not diverge even under strong continuous measurements. We illustrate our results by a qubit undergoing discrete and continuous measurement, where our approach provides a useful bound on the entropy production for all measurement strengths.

High-order topological phases of matter refer to the systems of $n$-dimensional bulk with the topology of $m$-th order, exhibiting ($n-m$)-dimensional boundary modes and can be characterized by topological pumping. Here, we experimentally demonstrate two types of second-order topological pumps, forming four 0-dimensional corner localized states on a $4\times 4$ square lattice array of 16 superconducting qubits. The initial ground state of the system at half-filling, as a product of four identical entangled 4-qubit states, is prepared using an adiabatic scheme. During the pumping procedure, we adiabatically modulate the superlattice Bose-Hubbard Hamiltonian by precisely controlling both the hopping strengths and on-site potentials. At the half pumping period, the system evolves to a corner-localized state in a quadrupole configuration. The robustness of the second-order topological pump is also investigated by introducing different on-site disorder. Our Letter studies the topological properties of high-order topological phases from the dynamical transport picture using superconducting qubits, which would inspire further research on high-order topological phases.

The accurate determination of the electronic structure of strongly correlated materials using first principle methods is of paramount importance in condensed matter physics, computational chemistry, and material science. However, due to the exponential scaling of computational resources, incorporating such materials into classical computation frameworks becomes prohibitively expensive. In 2016, Bauer et al. proposed a hybrid quantum-classical approach to correlated materials [B. Bauer et al., Hybrid quantum-classical approach to correlated materials, Phys. Rev. X 6, 031045 (2016).] that can efficiently tackle the electronic structure of complex correlated materials. Here, we experimentally demonstrate that approach to tackle the computational challenges associated with strongly correlated materials. By seamlessly integrating quantum computation into classical computers, we address the most computationally demanding aspect of the calculation, namely the computation of the Green’s function, using a spin quantum processor. Furthermore, we realize a self-consistent determination of the single impurity Anderson model through a feedback loop between quantum and classical computations. A quantum phase transition in the Hubbard model from the metallic phase to the Mott insulator is observed as the strength of electron correlation increases. As the number of qubits with high control fidelity continues to grow, our experimental findings pave the way for solving even more complex models, such as strongly correlated crystalline materials or intricate molecules.

We examine one-loop corrections from small-scale curvature perturbations to the superhorizon-limit ones in single-field inflation models, which have recently caused controversy. We consider the case where the Universe experiences transitions of slow-roll $(\mathrm{SR})\to \mathrm{intermediate}\mathrm{period}\to \mathrm{SR}$. The intermediate period can be an ultra-slow-roll period or a resonant amplification period, either of which enhances small-scale curvature perturbations. We assume that the superhorizon curvature perturbations are conserved at least during each of the SR periods. Within this framework, we show that the superhorizon curvature perturbations during the first and the second SR periods coincide at one-loop level in the slow-roll limit.

Interferometers, which are built using spatially propagating light or matter waves, are commonly used to measure physical quantities. These measurements are made possible by exploiting the interference between waves traveling along different paths. This study introduces a novel approach to sensing of the Aharonov-Bohm phase, an ion matter-wave interferometer operating within a two-dimensional rotational trajectory in a trap potential. The ion orbitals in the nearly circular potential change rotation direction with time. This reversal of rotation direction results in a corresponding change in the interference phase. Our study is the first attempt to utilize propagating matter waves of an ion in constructing a two-dimensional interferometer for the measurement of physical quantities. Given that the scale factor of the interferometer to the cyclotron motion and the rotation of the system is common, the sensitivity to the Aharonov-Bohm phase in this study corresponds to a rotation sensitivity of approximately $300\mathrm{rad}/\mathrm{s}$. Besides advancing interferometry, our work also lays the foundation for future research into the use of ion matter waves in gyroscopic applications.

By leveraging the hyperfine interaction between the rotational and nuclear spin degrees of freedom, we demonstrate extensive magnetic control over the electric dipole moments, electric dipolar interactions, and ac Stark shifts of ground-state alkali-dimer molecules such as $\mathrm{KRb}(X{}^1{\mathrm{\Sigma }}^{+})$. The control is enabled by narrow avoided crossings and the highly ergodic character of molecular eigenstates at low magnetic fields, offering a general and robust way of continuously tuning the intermolecular electric dipolar interaction for applications in quantum simulation, quantum sensing, and dipolar spinor physics.

Relativistic electron bunches used to produce synchrotron radiation are systematically subjected to spontaneous appearance of microstructures, when a high number of electrons are used. In storage rings, this usually leads to an intense coherent emission in the terahetz range, with powers that are orders of magnitude higher than standard incoherent emission. However this emission generally displays an erratic behavior, which has strongly limited its domain of application so far. In this Letter—inspired by the process of gain switching in lasers—we present a new method for controlling the electron bunch dynamics during this instability. We show that it is possible to trigger the formation of the microstructures in the bunch, and also to considerably enhance the peak power of the coherent terahertz bursts. The experimental demonstration of this scheme—based on the modulation of a rf-cavity signal—is performed at the SOLEIL facility.

The quantum Hall effect emerges when two-dimensional samples are subjected to strong magnetic fields at low temperatures: Topologically protected edge states cause a quantized Hall conductivity in multiples of $e^2/h$. Here we show that the quantum Hall effect is accompanied by an orbital Hall effect. Our quantum mechanical calculations fit well the semiclassical interpretation in terms of “skipping orbits.” The chiral edge states of a quantum Hall system are orbital polarized akin to a hypothetical orbital version of the quantum anomalous Hall effect in magnetic systems. The orbital Hall resistivity scales quadratically with the magnetic field, making it the dominant effect at high fields.

The unusual structure and symmetry of low-energy states in twisted transition metal dichalcogenides leads to large in-plane spin-exchange interactions between spin-valley locked holes. We demonstrate that this exchange interaction can stabilize a gapped spin-liquid phase with a quantized spin-Chern number of 3 when the twist angle is sufficiently small and the system lies in a Mott insulating phase. The gapped spin liquid may be understood as arising from spinon pairing in the DIII Altland-Zirnbauer symmetry class. Applying an out-of-plane electric field or increasing the twist angle is shown to drive a transition, respectively, to an anomalous Hall insulator or an in-plane antiferromagnet. Recent experiments indicate that a spin-Chern number 3 phase occurs in twisted ${\mathrm{MoTe}}_2$ at small twist angles with a transition to a quantum anomalous Hall phase as the twist angle is increased above a critical value of about 2.5° in the absence of an applied electric field.

The ability of double-stranded DNA or RNA to locally melt and form kinks leads to strong nonlinear elasticity effects that qualitatively affect their packing in confined spaces. Using analytical theory and numerical simulation we show that kink formation entails a mixed spool-nematic ordering of double-stranded DNA or RNA in spherical capsids, consisting of an outer spool domain and an inner, twisted nematic domain. These findings explain the experimentally observed nematic domains in viral capsids and imply that nonlinear elasticity must be considered to predict the configurations and dynamics of double-stranded genomes in viruses, bacterial nucleoids or gene-delivery vehicles. The nonlinear elastic theory suggests that spool-nematic ordering is a general feature of strongly confined kinkable polymers.

The manipulation and transformation of quantum resources are key parts of quantum mechanics. Among them, asymmetry is one of the most useful operational resources, which is widely used in quantum clocks, quantum metrology, and other tasks. Recent studies have shown that the asymmetry of quantum states can be significantly amplified with the assistance of correlating catalysts that are finite-dimensional auxiliaries. In the experiment, we perform translationally invariant operations, ensuring that the asymmetric resources of the entire system remain nonincreasing, on a composite system composed of a catalytic system and a quantum system. The experimental results demonstrate an asymmetry amplification of $0.0172\pm 0.0022$ in the system following the catalytic process. Our Letter showcases the potential of quantum catalytic processes and is expected to inspire further research in the field of quantum resource theories.

Controlled quantum gates play a crucial role in enabling quantum universal operations by facilitating interactions between qubits. Direct implementation of three-qubit gates simplifies the design of quantum circuits, thereby being conducive to performing complex quantum algorithms. Here, we propose and present an experimental demonstration of a quantum Toffoli gate fully exploiting the polarization and orbital angular momentum of a single photon. The Toffoli gate is implemented using the polarized diffractive neural networks scheme, achieving a mean truth table visibility of $97.27\pm 0.20\%$. We characterize the gate’s performance through quantum state tomography on 216 different input states and quantum process tomography, which yields a process fidelity of $94.05\pm 0.02\%$. Our method offers a novel approach for realizing the Toffoli gate without requiring exponential optical elements while maintaining extensibility to the implementation of other three-qubit gates.