Work

Information lattice approach to the metal-insulator transition

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Correlation functions and correlation lengths are frequently used to describe phase transitions in quantum systems, but they require an explicit choice of observables. The recently introduced information lattice instead provides an observable-independent way to identify where and at which scale information is contained in quantum lattice models. Here, we use it to study the difference between the metallic and insulating regimes of one-dimensional noninteracting tight-binding chains. We find that the information per scale follows a power law in metals at low temperature and that Friedel-like oscillations are visible in the information lattice. At high temperature or in insulators at low temperature, the information per scale decays exponentially. Thus, the information lattice is a useful tool for analyzing the metal-insulator transition.

Source: Physical Review Research

DOI: 10.1103/2gvx-gp9g

Authors: William Skoglund, Elton Giacomelli, Yiqi Yang, Jens H. Bardarson, Erik van Loon

Institutions: Lund University, KTH Royal Institute of Technology

Language: English

Topic: Quantum many-body systems

Subfield: Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics

Field: Physics and Astronomy

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $2,625