Dissipation-induced anomalous multicritical phenomena

TL;DR

This paper investigates how dissipation affects phase transitions in a driven-dissipative quantum system, revealing the destruction of continuous symmetry-breaking phases and the emergence of anomalous tricritical points with unusual fluctuations.

Contribution

It demonstrates that infinitesimal dissipation alters the phase diagram and introduces anomalous finite fluctuations at tricritical points in a quantum cavity model.

Findings

Dissipation destroys continuous symmetry-breaking phases.

Multicritical point splits into two tricritical points due to dissipation.

Tricritical points exhibit anomalous finite quantum fluctuations.

Abstract

We explore the influence of dissipation on a paradigmatic driven-dissipative model where a collection of two level atoms interact with both quadratures of a quantum cavity mode. The closed system exhibits multiple phase transitions involving discrete and continuous symmetries breaking and all phases culminate in a multicritical point. In the open system, we show that infinitesimal dissipation erases the phase with broken continuous symmetry and radically alters the model's phase diagram. The multicritical point now becomes brittle and splits into two tricritical points where first- and second-order symmetry-breaking transitions meet. A quantum fluctuations analysis shows that, surprisingly, the tricritical points exhibit anomalous finite fluctuations, as opposed to standard tricritical points arising in $^3He-\text{}^4He$ mixtures. Our work has direct implications for a variety of fields, including cold atoms and ions in optical cavities, circuit-quantum electrodynamics as well as optomechanical systems.