Exact Solution and Large-Scale Scaling Analysis of the Imaginary Creutz–Stark Ladder

TL;DR

The paper provides an analytical solution for a quantum system under an imaginary Stark potential and reveals unique spectral properties through large-scale analysis.

Contribution

The novel contribution is the analytical solution and scaling analysis of the complex spectrum in an imaginary Stark ladder system.

Findings

The spectrum has a cross-shaped structure with discrete localized sectors and a continuous asymptotically real branch.

The asymptotically real branch arises when energy magnitude is smaller than inter-cell hopping strength.

The extended phase of the asymptotically real states emerges in the thermodynamic limit.

Abstract

We present an analytical solution for the complex spectrum of a Creutz ladder subject to an imaginary Stark potential. By mapping the system to a momentum-space differential equation, we derive the closed-form solution for the momentum-space wavefunctions. We identify a distinct cross-shaped spectrum consisting of discrete localized sectors and a continuous branch of asymptotically real states. Our derivation reveals that the discrete sectors arise from a global phase winding condition, whereas the asymptotically real branch emerges when the energy magnitude is smaller than the inter-cell hopping strength, a regime in which the momentum-space wavefunction develops singularities. We demonstrate that these singularities prevent standard quantization; instead, the open boundary conditions are satisfied via a size-dependent imaginary energy component that regulates the wavefunction decay. To investigate the properties of this branch in the thermodynamic limit, we perform large-scale finite-size scaling analysis up to system sizes L∼109. The numerical results confirm the power-law decay of the residual imaginary energy, supporting the asymptotic reality of these states. Furthermore, scaling of the inverse participation ratio and fractal dimension indicates that these states, while exhibiting size-dependent localization in finite systems, evolve into an extended phase in the thermodynamic limit. Our results establish a theoretical framework for understanding spectral transitions in systems with imaginary Stark potentials, with potential realizations in photonic frequency synthetic dimensions.

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