A dynamical relation between dual finite temperature classical and zero temperature quantum systems: quantum critical jamming and quantum dynamical heterogeneities

TL;DR

This paper establishes a novel exact mapping between finite temperature classical dissipative systems and zero temperature quantum systems, revealing phenomena like quantum dynamical heterogeneity and quantum jamming, with implications for understanding quantum critical transitions.

Contribution

It extends a known classical-quantum mapping to include non-equilibrium dynamics, enabling analysis of quantum critical phenomena and dynamical heterogeneities in quantum systems.

Findings

Quantum dynamical heterogeneity can occur without disorder.

Length scales of heterogeneities can grow significantly near criticality.

A zero temperature quantum critical transition with large dynamical exponent z>4 is demonstrated.

Abstract

Many electronic systems exhibit striking features in their dynamical response over a prominent range of experimental parameters. While there are empirical suggestions of particular increasing length scales that accompany such transitions, this identification is not universal. To better understand such behavior in quantum systems, we extend a known mapping (earlier studied in stochastic, or supersymmetric, quantum mechanics) between finite temperature classical Fokker-Planck systems and related quantum systems at zero temperature to include general non-equilibrium dynamics. Unlike Feynman mappings or stochastic quantization methods (or holographic type dualities), the classical systems that we consider and their quantum duals reside in the same number of space-time dimensions. The upshot of our exact result is that a Wick rotation relates (i) dynamics in general finite temperature classical dissipative systems to (ii) zero temperature dynamics in the corresponding dual many-body quantum systems. Using this correspondence, we illustrate that, even in the absence of imposed disorder, many continuum quantum fluid systems (and possible lattice counterparts) may exhibit a zero-point "quantum dynamical heterogeneity" wherein the dynamics, at a given instant, is spatially non-uniform. While the static length scales accompanying this phenomenon do not exhibit a clear divergence in standard correlation functions, the length scale of the dynamical heterogeneities can increase dramatically. We study "quantum jamming" and illustrate how a hard core bosonic system may undergo a zero temperature quantum critical metal-to-insulator-type transition with an extremely large effective dynamical exponent z>4 consistent with length scales that increase far more slowly than the relaxation time as a putative critical transition is approached. We suggest ways to analyze experimental data.