Quantum-mechanical nonperturbative response of driven chaotic mesoscopic systems

Consider a time-dependent Hamiltonian H(Q,P;x(t)) with periodic driving x(t) = Asin(Omegat). It is assumed that the classical dynamics is chaotic, and that its power spectrum extends over some frequency range |omega|A(prt), where A(prt) approximately Planck's over 2pi, the system may have a relatively strong response for Omega>omega(cl) due to QM nonperturbative effect.     

Statistical properties of resonance widths for open quantum graphs

We connect quantum compact graphs with infinite leads, and turn them into scattering systems. We derive an exact expression for the scattering matrix, and explain how it is related to the spectrum of the corresponding closed graph. The resulting expressions allow us to get a clear understanding of the phenomenon of resonance trapping due to over-critical coupling with the leads. Finally, we analyse the statistical properties of the resonance widths and compare our results with the predictions of random matrix theory. Deviations appearing due to the dynamical nature of the system are pointed out and explained.     

Unidirectional invisibility induced by PT-symmetric periodic structures

Parity-time (PT) symmetric periodic structures, near the spontaneous PT-symmetry breaking point, can act as unidirectional invisible media. In this regime, the reflection from one end is diminished while it is enhanced from the other. Furthermore, the transmission coefficient and phase are indistinguishable from those expected in the absence of a grating. The phenomenon is robust even in the presence of Kerr nonlinearities, and it can also effectively suppress optical bistabilities.     

PT-Symmetric Talbot Effects

We show that complex PT-symmetric photonic lattices can lead to a new class of self-imaging Talbot effects. For this to occur, we find that the input field pattern has to respect specific periodicities dictated by the symmetries of the system. While at the spontaneous PT-symmetry breaking point the image revivals occur at Talbot lengths governed by the characteristics of the passive lattice, at the exact phase it depends on the gain and loss parameter, thus allowing one to control the imaging process.     

Wavepacket dynamics, quantum reversibility, and random matrix theory

We introduce and analyze the physics of “driving reversal” experiments. These are prototype wavepacket dynamics scenarios probing quantum irreversibility. Unlike the mostly hypothetical “time reversal” concept, a “driving reversal” scenario can be realized in a laboratory experiment, and is relevant to the theory of quantum dissipation. We study both the energy spreading and the survival probability in such experiments. We also introduce and study the “compensation time” (time of maximum return) in such a scenario. Extensive effort is devoted to figuring out the capability of either linear response theory or random matrix theory (RMT) to describe specific features of the time evolution. We explain that RMT modeling leads to a strong non-perturbative response effect that differs from the semiclassical behavior.     

Critical fidelity at the metal-insulator transition

Using a Wigner Lorentzian random matrix ensemble, we study the fidelity, F(t), of systems at the Anderson metal-insulator transition, subject to small perturbations that preserve the criticality. We find that there are three decay regimes as perturbation strength increases: the first two are associated with a Gaussian and an exponential decay, respectively, and can be described using linear response theory. For stronger perturbations F(t) decays algebraically as F(t) approximately t(-D2(mu)), where D2(mu) is the correlation dimension of the local density of states.     

Statistics of resonances and delay times: a criterion for metal-insulator transitions

We study the distributions of the normalized resonance widths P(Gamma;) and delay times P(tau;) for 3D disordered tight-binding systems at the metal-insulator transition (MIT) by attaching leads to the boundary sites. Both distributions are scale invariant, independent of the microscopic details of the random potential and the number of channels. Theoretical considerations suggest the existence of a scaling theory for P(Gamma;) in finite samples, and numerical calculations confirm this hypothesis. Based on this, we give a new criterion for the determination and analysis of the MIT.     

Superconductor-proximity effect in hybrid structures: fractality versus chaos

We study the proximity effect of a superconductor to a normal system with a fractal spectrum. We find that there is no gap in the excitation spectrum, even in the case where the underlying classical dynamics of the normal system is chaotic. An analytical expression for the distribution of the smallest excitation eigenvalue E1 of the hybrid structure is obtained. On small scales it decays algebraically as P(E1) approximately E1(-D0), where D0 is the fractal dimension of the spectrum of the normal system. Our theoretical predictions are verified by numerical calculations performed for various models.     

Quantum reversibility: is there an echo?

We study the possibility to undo the quantum mechanical evolution in a time reversal experiment. The naive expectation, as reflected in the common terminology ("Loschmidt echo"), is that maximum compensation results if the reversed dynamics extends to the same time as the forward evolution. We challenge this belief and demonstrate that the time t(r) for maximum return probability is in general shorter. We find that t(r) depends on lambda=epsilon(evol)/epsilon(prep), being the ratio of the error in setting the parameters (fields) for the time-reversed evolution to the perturbation which is involved in the preparation process. Our results should be observable in spin-echo experiments where the dynamical irreversibility of quantum phases is measured.