Analytical theory of many-body localization in the presence of periodic drive

TL;DR

This paper develops an analytical framework for understanding how periodic driving influences many-body localization, revealing regimes where the drive can either suppress or enhance localization.

Contribution

It introduces a Bethe lattice-based analytical approach to study Floquet states in many-body localized systems under periodic drive, extending to more realistic models.

Findings

Periodic drive can both suppress and enhance localization.

Three regimes of localization behavior depending on drive parameters.

Results applicable to cold atom and spin defect experiments.

Abstract

Many-body localization transition in a periodically driven quantum system is investigated using a solution of a matching Bethe lattice problem for Floquet states of a quantum random energy model with a generalization to more realistic settings. It turns out that an external periodic field can both suppress and enhance localization depending on field amplitude and frequency which leads to three distinguishable regimes of field enhanced, controlled and suppressed delocalization. The results can be verified experimentally in systems of cold atoms and/or interacting spin defects in semiconductors.