Many-body multivaluedness of particle-current variance in closed and open cold-atom systems
Open Access Publications from the University of California

## Many-body multivaluedness of particle-current variance in closed and open cold-atom systems

• Author(s): Metcalf, Mekena
• Lai, Chen-Yen
• Di Ventra, Massimiliano
• Chien, Chih-Chun
• et al.

## Published Web Location

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.98.053601
Abstract

The quantum variance of an observable is a fundamental quantity in quantum mechanics, and the variance provides additional information other than the average itself. By examining the relation between the particle-current variance $(\delta J)^2$ and the average current $J$ in both closed and open interacting fermionic systems, we show the emergence of a multi-valued Lissajous curve between $\delta J$ and $J$ due to interactions. As a closed system we considered the persistent current in a benzene-like lattice enclosing an effective magnetic flux and solved it by exact diagonalization. For the open system, the steady-state current flowing through a few lattice sites coupled to two particle reservoirs was investigated using a Lindblad equation. In both cases, interactions open a loop and change the topology of the corresponding $\delta J$-$J$ Lissajous curve, showing that this effect is model-independent. We finally discuss how the predicted phenomena can be observed in ultracold atoms, thus offering an alternative way of probing the dynamics of many-body systems.

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