Topological bound states of a quantum walk with cold atoms

Samuel Mugel, Alessio Celi, Pietro Massignan, János K. Asbóth, Maciej Lewenstein, and Carlos Lobo
Phys. Rev. A 94, 023631 – Published 26 August 2016

Abstract

We suggest a method for engineering a quantum walk, with cold atoms as walkers, which presents topologically nontrivial properties. We derive the phase diagram, and show that we are able to produce a boundary between topologically distinct phases using the finite beam width of the applied lasers. A topologically protected bound state can then be observed, which is pinned to the interface and is robust to perturbations. We show that it is possible to identify this bound state by averaging over spin sensitive measures of the atom's position, based on the spin distribution that these states display. Interestingly, there exists a parameter regime in which our system maps on to the Creutz ladder.

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  • Received 2 May 2016

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.94.023631

©2016 American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Atomic, Molecular & Optical

Authors & Affiliations

Samuel Mugel1,2, Alessio Celi2, Pietro Massignan2, János K. Asbóth3, Maciej Lewenstein2,4, and Carlos Lobo1

  • 1Mathematical Sciences, University of Southampton, Highfield, Southampton SO17 1BJ, United Kingdom
  • 2ICFO-Institut de Ciencies Fotoniques, The Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, 08860 Castelldefels (Barcelona), Spain
  • 3Institute for Solid State Physics and Optics, Wigner Research Centre, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, H-1525 Budapest, P.O. Box 49, Hungary
  • 4ICREA-Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats, E-08010 Barcelona, Spain

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Issue

Vol. 94, Iss. 2 — August 2016

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