# The rotation-invariant Hamiltonian problem is QMA$_{\rm EXP}$-complete

**Authors:** Jon Nelson, Daniel Gottesman

arXiv: 2509.00161 · 2025-09-03

## TL;DR

This paper investigates the computational complexity of a rotation-invariant local Hamiltonian problem, establishing it as QMA_EXP-complete for a broad parameter range, thus advancing understanding of quantum complexity in lattice systems.

## Contribution

It proves that the rotation-invariant Hamiltonian problem is QMA_EXP-complete for fixed lattice dimension and scaled lattice length, answering an open question and broadening complexity classification.

## Key findings

- The problem is QMA_EXP-complete for fixed lattice dimension and scaled length.
- Rotation-invariant Hamiltonians have high computational complexity in a broad parameter range.
- The result bridges the gap between known one-dimensional and high-dimensional cases.

## Abstract

In this work, we study a variant of the local Hamiltonian problem where we restrict to Hamiltonians that live on a lattice and are invariant under translations and rotations of the lattice. In the one-dimensional case this problem is known to be QMA$_{\rm EXP}$-complete. On the other hand, if we fix the lattice length then in the high-dimensional limit the ground state becomes unentangled due to arguments from mean-field theory. We take steps towards understanding this complexity spectrum by studying a problem that is intermediate between these two extremes. Namely, we consider the regime where the lattice dimension is arbitrary but fixed and the lattice length is scaled. We prove that this rotation-invariant Hamiltonian problem is QMA$_{\rm EXP}$-complete answering an open question of [Gottesman, Irani 2013]. This characterizes a broad parameter range in which these rotation-invariant Hamiltonians have high computational complexity.

## Full text

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## Figures

12 figures with captions in the complete paper: https://tomesphere.com/paper/2509.00161/full.md

## References

14 references — full list in the complete paper: https://tomesphere.com/paper/2509.00161/full.md

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Source: https://tomesphere.com/paper/2509.00161