Characterizing unknown quantum states and measurements is a fundamental problem in quantum information processing. In this Letter, we provide a novel scheme to self-test local quantum systems using noncontextuality inequalities. Our work leverages the graph-theoretic framework for contextuality introduced by Cabello, Severini, and Winter, combined with tools from mathematical optimization that guarantee the unicity of optimal solutions. As an application, we show that the celebrated Klyachko-Can-Binicioğlu-Shumovsky inequality and its generalization to contextuality scenarios with odd $n$-cycle compatibility relations admit robust self-testing.

Thus far, all known ghost-free interactions of multiple spin-2 fields have involved at most pairwise couplings of the fields, which are direct generalizations of bimetric interactions. We present a class of spin-2 theories with genuine multifield interactions and explicitly demonstrate the absence of ghost instabilities. The construction involves integrating out a nondynamical field in a theory of spin-2 fields with only pairwise ghost-free interactions. The new multivierbein interactions generated are not always expressible in terms of the associated metrics.

The intensity-dependent resonancelike enhancement phenomenon in the high-order above-threshold ionization spectrum is a typical quantum effect for atoms or molecules in an intense laser field, which has not been well understood. The calculations of the time-dependent Schrödinger equation (TDSE) are in remarkable agreement with the experimental data, but they cannot clarify the contributions of the bound states. The semiclassical approach of strong field approximation, in which no excited states are involved, can obtain a similar phenomenon, but the laser intensities of enhanced regions predicted by the strong field approximation are inconsistent with the results of the TDSE. In this Letter, a new fully quantum model is established from the TDSE without any excited states. Two types of enhanced structures, unimodal and multimodal structures, are found in the results of the TDSE and model. In addition, the calculations of the model reproduce the key features of the results of the TDSE. It shows that the excited states are not the key factor in the resonancelike enhancements in our calculated system, since there are no excited states in our model. Based on the calculations of our model, we show that such resonancelike enhancements are caused by the constructive interference of different momentum transfer channels. Last, the Fano-like line shapes are also discussed for the features of multichannel interference.

The classification of topological Floquet systems with time-periodic Hamiltonians transcends that of static systems. For example, spinless fermions in periodically driven two-dimensional lattices are not completely characterized by the Chern numbers of the quasienergy bands, but rather by a set of winding numbers associated with the gaps. We propose a feasible scheme for measuring these winding numbers in a periodically driven optical lattice efficiently and directly. It is based on the construction of a one-parameter family of drives, continuously connecting the Floquet system of interest to a trivial reference system. The winding numbers are then determined by the identification and the tomography of the band-touching singularities occurring on the way. As a by-product, we also propose a method for probing spectral properties of time evolution operators via a time analog of crystallography.

Laser dynamics encompasses universal phenomena that can be encountered in many areas of physics, such as bifurcation and chaos, mode competition, resonant nonlinearities, and synchronization—or locking—of oscillators. When a locking process occurs in a multimode laser, an optical frequency comb is produced, which is an optical spectrum consisting of equidistant modes with a fixed phase relationship. Describing the formation of self-starting frequency combs in terms of fundamental laser equations governing the field inside the cavity does not allow one, in general, to grasp how the laser synchronizes its modes. Our finding is that, in a particular class of lasers where the output is frequency modulated with small or negligible intensity modulation, a greatly simplified description of self-locking exists. We show that in quantum cascade lasers—solid-state representatives of these lasers characterized by an ultrashort carrier relaxation time—the frequency comb formation obeys a simple variational principle, which was postulated over 50 years ago and relies on the maximization of the laser output power. The conditions for the breakdown of this principle are also experimentally identified, shedding light on the behavior of many different types of lasers, such as dye, diode, and other cascade lasers. This discovery reveals that the formation of frequency-modulated combs is an elegant example of an optimization problem solved by a physical system.

A reproducible stationary high-confinement regime with small “edge-localized modes” (ELMs) has been achieved recently in the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak, which has a metal wall and low plasma rotation as projected for a fusion reactor. We have uncovered that this small ELM regime is enabled by a wide edge transport barrier (pedestal) with a low density gradient and a high density ratio between the pedestal foot and top. Nonlinear simulations reveal, for the first time, that the underlying mechanism for the observed small ELM crashes is the upper movement of the peeling boundary induced by an initial radially localized collapse in the pedestal, which stops the growth of instabilities and further collapse of the pedestal, thus providing a physics basis for mitigating ELMs in future steady-state fusion reactors.

We report on the novel valley acoustoelectric effect, which can arise in a 2D material, like a transition metal dichalcogenide monolayer, residing on a piezoelectric substrate. The essence of this effect lies in the emergence of a drag electric current (and a spin current) due to a propagating surface acoustic wave. This current consists of three contributions, one independent of the valley index and proportional to the acoustic wave vector, the other arising due to the trigonal warping of the electron dispersion, and the third one is due to the Berry phase, which Bloch electrons acquire traveling along the crystal. As a result, there appear components of the current orthogonal to the acoustic wave vector. Further, we build an angular pattern, encompassing nontrivial topological properties of the acoustoelectric current, and suggest a way to run and measure the conventional diffusive, warping, and acoustoelectric valley Hall currents independently. We develop a theory, which opens a way to manipulate valley transport by acoustic methods, expanding the applicability of valleytronic effects on acoustoelectronic devices.

We have deterministically created a stable topological spin texture in magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJ) by using pulsed or microwave currents. The spin texture is characterized by a field-dependent intermediate resistance state and a new magnetic resonance. Micromagnetic simulations show that the observations are consistent with the nucleation of a single skyrmion, facilitated by a spatially nonuniform stray field. The unique resonance spectrum is identified as the skyrmion breathing mode and a skyrmion diameter of 75 nm is estimated. This work shows the possibility to create skyrmions in MTJs without the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction and could lead to noninvasive, on-chip skyrmion measurement.

The interfacial Dzyaloshinkii-Moriya interaction defines a rotational sense for the spin structure in two-dimensional magnetic films and can be used to create chiral magnetic structures like spin spirals and skyrmions in those films. Here, we show by means of atomistic calculations that in heterostructures an interlayer coupling of the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya type across a spacer can emerge. We quantify this interaction in the framework of the Lévy-Fert model for trilayers consisting of two ferromagnets separated by a nonmagnetic spacer and show that such an interlayer Dzyaloshinkii-Moriya interaction yields nontrivial three-dimensional spin textures across the entire trilayer, which evolve within as well as between the planes and, hence, combine intraplane and interplane chiralities. This analysis opens new perspectives for three-dimensional tailoring of magnetic chirality in multilayers.

Composite Fermi liquids (CFLs) are compressible states that can occur for 2D interacting fermions confined in the lowest Landau level at certain Landau level fillings. They have been understood as Fermi seas formed by composite fermions which are bound states of electromagnetic fluxes and electrons as reported by Halperin, Lee, and Read [Phys. Rev. B 47, 7312 (1993)]. At half filling, an explicitly particle-hole symmetric theory based on Dirac fermions was proposed by Son [Phys. Rev. X 5, 031027 (2015)] as an alternative low energy description. In this work, we investigate the Berry curvature of CFL model wave functions at a filling fraction of one-quarter, and observe that it is uniformly distributed over the Fermi sea except at the center where an additional $\pi$ phase was found. Motivated by this, we propose an effective theory which generalizes Son’s half filling theory, by internal gauge flux attachment, to all filling fractions in which fermionic CFLs can occur. The numerical results support the idea of internal gauge flux attachment.

Quantum link models (QLMs) are extensions of Wilson-type lattice gauge theories which realize exact gauge invariance with finite-dimensional Hilbert spaces. QLMs not only reproduce standard features of Wilson lattice gauge theories in equilibrium, but can also host new phenomena such as crystalline confined phases. The local constraints due to gauge invariance also provide kinetic restrictions that can influence substantially the real-time dynamics in these systems. We aim to characterize the nonequilibrium evolution in lattice gauge theories through the lens of dynamical quantum phase transitions, which provide general principles for real-time dynamics in quantum many-body systems. Specifically, we study quantum quenches for two representative cases, U(1) QLMs in $(1+1)\mathrm{D}$ and $(2+1)\mathrm{D}$, for initial conditions exhibiting long-range order. Finally, we discuss the connection to the high-energy perspective and the experimental feasibility to observe the discussed phenomena in recent quantum simulator settings such as trapped ions, ultracold atoms, and Rydberg atoms.

We consider sudden quenches across quantum phase transitions in the $S=1$ $XXZ$ model starting from the Haldane phase. We demonstrate that dynamical phase transitions may occur during these quenches that are identified by nonanalyticities in the rate function for the return probability. In addition, we show that the temporal behavior of the string order parameter is intimately related to the subsequent dynamical phase transitions. We furthermore find that the dynamical quantum phase transitions can be accompanied by enhanced two-site entanglement.

We prove the existence of a general class of rapidly turning two-field inflationary attractors. By only requiring a large, slowly varying turn rate, we solve the system completely without specifying any metric or potential and prove the linear stability of the solution. Several recently studied turning inflation models, including hyperinflation, sidetracked inflation, and a flat field-space model, turn out to be examples of this general class of attractor solutions. Very rapidly turning models are of particular interest since they can be compatible with the swampland conjectures, and we show that the solutions further simplify in this limit.

The ordering of polar hydrogen bonds may break space inversion symmetry and induce ferroelectricity or antiferroelectricity. This process is usually immune to external magnetic fields so that magnetic control of hydrogen bonds is very challenging. Here we demonstrate that the ordering of hydrogen bonds in the metal-organic frameworks $[{({\mathrm{CH}}_3)}_2{\mathrm{NH}}_2]M{(\mathrm{HCOO})}_3$ ($M=\mathrm{Fe}$, Co) can be manipulated by applying magnetic fields. After cooling in a high magnetic field, the order-disorder transition of hydrogen bonds shifts to a lower or higher temperature, depending on antiferroelectricity or ferroelectricity induced by hydrogen bond ordering. Besides, the order-disorder transition leads to a giant thermal expansion, exceeding $\sim 3.5\times {10}^4$ and $\sim 2\times {10}^4\mathrm{ppm}$ for $M=\mathrm{Fe}$ and Co, respectively, which is much higher than that of inorganic ferroelectrics. The influence of magnetic field on hydrogen bond ordering is discussed in terms of the magnetoelastic coupling.

We present laser-driven shock compression experiments on cryogenic liquid deuterium to 550 GPa along the principal Hugoniot and reflected-shock data up to 1 TPa. High-precision interferometric Doppler velocimetry and impedance-matching analysis were used to determine the compression accurately enough to reveal a significant difference as compared to state-of-the-art ab initio calculations and thus, no single equation of state model fully matches the principal Hugoniot of deuterium over the observed pressure range. In the molecular-to-atomic transition pressure range, models based on density functional theory calculations predict the maximum compression accurately. However, beyond 250 GPa along the principal Hugoniot, first-principles models exhibit a stiffer response than the experimental data. Similarly, above 500 GPa the reflected shock data show 5%–7% higher compression than predicted by all current models.

The structures produced by a sharp tip scraping a compliant surface are modeled in the illustrative case of scan patterns formed by a series of parallel lines. This is made possible by a modified version of the Prandtl model for stick-slip friction, with an interaction energy landscape replicating the morphology of the evolving surface. As a result, a ripple motif emerges with a tilt angle increasing linearly with the distance between the scan lines, except for the region close to the left boundary of the scanned area, where the ripples are oriented at 90°. This region can penetrate considerably to the right, forming a complex branched pattern. These predictions are substantiated by atomic force microscopy nanolithography experiments on polystyrene surfaces at room temperature. A simple and robust theoretical protocol for reproducing early-stage wear processes (potentially going beyond single contacts) is thus made available.