Majorana Modes in Driven-Dissipative Atomic Superfluids With Zero Chern Number

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates the theoretical existence of Majorana zero modes in dissipative, two-dimensional fermionic superfluids with zero Chern number, highlighting a novel topological phase driven by dissipation.

Contribution

It introduces a model of dissipative vortex states that host Majorana modes without relying on Hamiltonian topology, revealing a new mechanism for topological states.

Findings

Majorana zero modes can exist in dissipative systems with zero Chern number.

A topological phase transition is observed via a winding number change.

Dissipation can be engineered to realize topological states absent in Hamiltonian systems.

Abstract

We investigate dissipation-induced p-wave paired states of fermions in two dimensions and show the existence of spatially separated Majorana zero modes in a phase with vanishing Chern number. We construct an explicit and natural model of a dissipative vortex that traps a single of these modes, and establish its topological origin by mapping the problem to a chiral one-dimensional wire where we observe a non-equilibrium topological phase transition characterized by an abrupt change of a topological invariant (winding number). We show that the existence of a single Majorana zero mode in the vortex core is intimately tied to the dissipative nature of our model. Engineered dissipation opens up possibilities for experimentally realizing such states with no Hamiltonian counterpart.