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SciPost Physics Vol. 19 issue 5 (November 2025)

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Rényi entropies for one-dimensional quantum systems with mixed boundary conditions

Benoit Estienne, Yacine Ikhlef, Andrei Rotaru

SciPost Phys. 19, 119 (2025) · published 6 November 2025 | · pdf

We present a general method for calculating Rényi entropies in the ground state of a one-dimensional critical system with mixed open boundaries, for an interval starting at one of its ends. Technically, we consider the case when the boundary operator implementing the change of boundary conditions is degenerate under the Virasoro algebra. By exploiting the null-vectors conditions, we derive the ordinary differential equations that govern the scaling functions associated to the entropies. In particular, we provide an explicit formula for the second Rényi entropy. Additionally, we identify and compute the leading finite-size corrections to compare our theoretical results with numerical data for the Ising and three-state Potts critical chains.
Quantum chaos in PT symmetric quantum systems

Kshitij Sharma, Himanshu Sahu, Subroto Mukerjee

SciPost Phys. 19, 120 (2025) · published 7 November 2025 | · pdf

In this study, we explore the interplay between $\mathcal{PT}$-symmetry and quantum chaos in a non-Hermitian dynamical system. We consider an extension of the standard diagnostics of quantum chaos, namely the complex level spacing ratio and out-of-time-ordered correlators (OTOCs), to study the $\mathcal{PT}$-symmetric quantum kicked rotor model. The kicked rotor has long been regarded as a paradigmatic dynamic system to study classical and quantum chaos. By introducing non-Hermiticity in the quantum kicked rotor, we uncover new phases and transitions that are absent in the Hermitian system. From the study of the complex level spacing ratio, we locate three regimes – one which is integrable and $\mathcal{PT}$-symmetry, another which is chaotic with $\mathcal{PT}$-symmetry and a third which is chaotic but with broken $\mathcal{PT}$-symmetry. We find that the complex level spacing ratio can distinguish between all three phases. Since calculations of the OTOC can be related to those of the classical Lyapunov exponent in the semi-classical limit, we investigate its nature in these regimes and at the phase boundaries. In the phases with $\mathcal{PT}$-symmetry, the OTOC exhibits behaviour akin to what is observed in the Hermitian system in both the integrable and chaotic regimes. Moreover, in the $\mathcal{PT}$-symmetry broken phase, the OTOC demonstrates additional exponential growth stemming from the complex nature of the eigenvalue spectrum at later times. We derive the analytical form of the late-time behaviour of the OTOC. By defining a normalized OTOC to mitigate the effects caused by $\mathcal{PT}$-symmetry breaking, we show that the OTOC exhibits singular behaviour at the transition from the $\mathcal{PT}$-symmetric chaotic phase to the $\mathcal{PT}$-symmetry broken, chaotic phase.
Automated evaluation of imaginary time strong coupling diagrams by sum-of-exponentials hybridization fitting

Zhen Huang, Denis Golež, Hugo U. R. Strand, Jason Kaye

SciPost Phys. 19, 121 (2025) · published 7 November 2025 | · pdf

We present an efficient separation of variables algorithm for the evaluation of imaginary time Feynman diagrams appearing in the bold pseudo-particle strong coupling expansion of the Anderson impurity model. The algorithm uses a fitting method based on AAA rational approximation and numerical optimization to obtain a sum-of-exponentials expansion of the hybridization function, which is then used to decompose the diagrams. A diagrammatic formulation of the algorithm leads to an automated procedure for diagrams of arbitrary order and topology. We also present methods of stabilizing the self-consistent solution of the pseudo-particle Dyson equation. The result is a low-cost and high-order accurate impurity solver for quantum embedding methods using general multi-orbital hybridization functions at low temperatures, appropriate for low-to-intermediate expansion orders. In addition to other benchmark examples, we use our solver to perform a dynamical mean-field theory study of a minimal model of the strongly correlated compound Ca$_2$RuO$_4$, describing the anti-ferromagnetic transition and the in- and out-of-plane anisotropy induced by spin-orbit coupling.
Geometric expansion of fluctuations and average shadows

Clément Berthière, Benoit Estienne, Jean-Marie Stéphan, William Witczak-Krempa

SciPost Phys. 19, 122 (2025) · published 7 November 2025 | · pdf

Fluctuations of observables provide unique insights into the nature of physical systems, and their study stands as a cornerstone of both theoretical and experimental science. Generalized fluctuations, or cumulants, provide information beyond the mean and variance of an observable. In this paper, we develop a systematic method to determine the asymptotic behavior of cumulants of local observables as the region becomes large. Our analysis reveals that the expansion is closely tied to the geometric characteristics of the region and its boundary, with coefficients given by convex moments of the connected correlation function: the latter is integrated against intrinsic volumes of convex polytopes built from the coordinates, which can be interpreted as average shadows. A particular application of our method shows that, in two dimensions, the leading behavior of odd cumulants of conserved quantities is topological, specifically depending on the Euler characteristic of the region. We illustrate these results with the paradigmatic strongly-interacting system of two-dimensional quantum Hall state at filling fraction $1/2$, by performing Monte-Carlo calculations of the skewness (third cumulant) of particle number in the Laughlin state.
Interpolating amplitudes

Víctor Bresó-Pla, Gudrun Heinrich, Vitaly Magerya, Anton Olsson

SciPost Phys. 19, 123 (2025) · published 10 November 2025 | · pdf

The calculation of scattering amplitudes at higher orders in perturbation theory has reached a high degree of maturity. However, their usage to produce physical predictions within Monte Carlo programs is often precluded by the slow evaluation of two- and higher-loop virtual amplitudes, particularly those calculated numerically. As a remedy, interpolation frameworks have been successfully used for amplitudes depending on up to two kinematic invariants. For amplitude interpolation with more variables, such as the five dimensions of a $2\to 3$ phase space, efficient and reliable solutions are sparse. This work aims to pave the way for using amplitude interpolation in higher-dimensional phase spaces by reviewing state-of-the-art interpolation methods, and assessing their performance on a selection of $2\to 3$ scattering amplitudes. Specifically, we investigate interpolation methods based on polynomials, splines, spatially adaptive sparse grids, and neural networks (multilayer perceptron and Lorentz-Equivariant Geometric Algebra Transformer), all under the constraint of limited obtainable data. Our additional aim is to motivate further studies of the interpolation of scattering amplitudes among both physicists and mathematicians.
Bootstrapping nonequilibrium stochastic processes

Minjae Cho

SciPost Phys. 19, 124 (2025) · published 10 November 2025 | · pdf

We show that bootstrap methods based on the positivity of probability measures provide a systematic framework for studying both synchronous and asynchronous nonequilibrium stochastic processes on infinite lattices. First, we formulate linear programming problems that use positivity and invariance property of invariant measures to derive rigorous bounds on their expectation values. Second, for time evolution in asynchronous processes, we exploit the master equation along with positivity and initial conditions to construct linear and semidefinite programming problems that yield bounds on expectation values at both short and late times. We illustrate both approaches using two canonical examples: the contact process in 1+1 and 2+1 dimensions, and the Domany-Kinzel model in both synchronous and asynchronous forms in 1+1 dimensions. Our bounds on invariant measures yield rigorous lower bounds on critical rates, while those on time evolutions provide two-sided bounds on the half-life of the infection density and the temporal correlation length in the subcritical phase.
Characterizing the hadronization of parton showers using the HOMER method

Benoît Assi, Christian Bierlich, Philip Ilten, Tony Menzo, Stephen Mrenna, Manuel Szewc, Michael K. Wilkinson, Ahmed Youssef, Jure Zupan

SciPost Phys. 19, 125 (2025) · published 11 November 2025 | · pdf

We update the HOMER method, a technique to solve a restricted version of the inverse problem of hadronization – extracting the Lund string fragmentation function $f(z)$ from data using only observable information. Here, we demonstrate its utility by extracting $f(z)$ from synthetic Pythia simulations using high-level observables constructed on an event-by-event basis, such as multiplicities and shape variables. Four cases of increasing complexity are considered, corresponding to $e^+e^-$ collisions at a center-of-mass energy of $90≥v$ producing either a string stretched between a $q$ and $\bar{q}$ containing no gluons; the same string containing one gluon $g$ with fixed kinematics; the same but the gluon has varying kinematics; and the most realistic case, strings with an unrestricted number of gluons that is the end-result of a parton shower. We demonstrate the extraction of $f(z)$ in each case, with the result of only a relatively modest degradation in performance of the HOMER method with the increased complexity of the string system.
Non-invertible symmetries of two-dimensional non-linear sigma models

Guillermo Arias-Tamargo, Chris Hull, Maxwell L. Velásquez Cotini Hutt

SciPost Phys. 19, 126 (2025) · published 11 November 2025 | · pdf

Global symmetries can be generalised to transformations generated by topological operators, including cases in which the topological operator does not have an inverse. A family of such topological operators are intimately related to dualities via the procedure of half-space gauging. In this work we discuss the construction of non-invertible defects based on T-duality in two dimensions, generalising the well-known case of the free compact boson to any Non-Linear Sigma Model with Wess-Zumino term which is T-dualisable. This requires that the target space has an isometry with compact orbits that acts without fixed points. Our approach allows us to include target spaces without non-trivial 1-cycles, does not require the NLSM to be conformal, and when it is conformal it does not need to be rational; moreover, it highlights the microscopic origin of the topological terms that are responsible for the non-invertibility of the defect. An interesting class of examples are Wess-Zumino-Witten models, which are self-dual under a discrete gauging of a subgroup of the isometry symmetry and so host a topological defect line with Tambara-Yamagami fusion. Along the way, we discuss how the usual 0-form symmetries match across T-dual models in target spaces without 1-cycles, and how global obstructions can prevent locally conserved currents from giving rise to topological operators.
Testing Kubo formula on a nonlinear quantum conductor driven far from equilibrium, via power exchanges

Zubair Iftikhar, Jonas Müller, Yuri Mukharsky, Philippe Joyez, Patrice Roche, Carles Altimiras

SciPost Phys. 19, 127 (2025) · published 11 November 2025 | · pdf

We present an experimental test of Kubo formula performed on a nonlinear quantum conductor, a Superconductor-Insulator-Superconductor tunnel junction, driven far from equilibrium by a DC voltage bias. We implement the proposal of Lesovik & Loosen [G. B. Lesovik and R. Loosen, J. Exp. Theor. Phys. Lett. 65, 295 (1997)] and demonstrate experimentally that it is possible to extract both the emission and absorption noise of the conductor by measuring the power it exchanges with a linear detection circuit whose occupation is tuned close to vacuum levels. We then compare their difference to the real part of the admittance which is independently measured by coherent reflectometry, finding that Kubo formula holds within experimental accuracy. Last, we show theoretically that the spectral density of power exchanged between a quantum conductor and its linear detection circuit follows a Lesovik & Loosen like formula, even in the presence of strong detection back-action. This result applies as long as the conductor acts as a current source for the detection circuit and the detection circuit is not singular.
Three dimensional topological field theories and Nahm sum formulas

Dongmin Gang, Heeyeon Kim, Byoungyoon Park, Spencer Stubbs

SciPost Phys. 19, 128 (2025) · published 12 November 2025 | · pdf

It is known that a large class of characters of 2d conformal field theories (CFTs) can be written in the form of a Nahm sum. In [D. Zagier, in Frontiers in number theory, physics, and geometry II, Springer, Berlin (2007)], D. Zagier identified a list of Nahm sum expressions that are modular functions under a congruence subgroup of $SL(2,\mathbb{Z})$, which can be thought of as candidates for characters of rational CFTs. Motivated by the observation that the same formulas appear as the half-indices of certain 3d $\mathcal{N}=2$ supersymmetric gauge theories, we perform a general search over low-rank 3d $\mathcal{N}=2$ Abelian Chern-Simons matter theories which either flow to unitary TFTs or $\mathcal{N}=4$ rank-zero SCFTs in the infrared. These are exceptional classes of 3d theories, which are expected to support rational and $C_2$-cofinite chiral algebras on their boundary. We compare and contrast our results with Zagier's and comment on a possible generalization of Nahm's conjecture.
A real-time approach to frequency-mixing spectroscopies: Application to sum and difference frequency generation in two-dimensional crystals

Mike N. Pionteck, Myrta Grüning, Simone Sanna, Claudio Attaccalite

SciPost Phys. 19, 129 (2025) · published 18 November 2025 | · pdf

We propose a computational framework to extract nonlinear response functions from real-time simulations in the presence of more than one external field. We apply this approach to the calculation of sum frequency generation (SFG) and difference frequency generation (DFG). SFG and DFG are second-order nonlinear processes where two lasers with frequencies $\omega_1$ and $\omega_2$ combine to produce a response at frequency $\omega = \omega_1 ± \omega_2$. Compared with other nonlinear responses such as second-harmonic generation, SFG and DFG allow for tunability over a larger range. Moreover, the optical response can be enhanced by selecting the two laser frequencies in order to match specific electron-hole transitions. To assess the approach, we calculate the SFG and DFG of two-dimensional crystals, h-BN and MoS$_2$ monolayers, from real-time solution of an effective Schrödinger equation. Within the effective Schrödinger equation, one can select from various levels of theory for the effective one-particle Hamiltonian to account for local-field effects and electron-hole interactions. We compare results obtained within the independent particle picture and including many-body effects. Such comparison allows us to identify and characterize excitonic features in the obtained spectra. Additionally, we demonstrate that our approach can also extract higher-order response functions, such as field-induced second-harmonic generation. We provide an example using the h-BN bilayer.
Emergent Kitaev materials in synthetic Fermi-Hubbard bilayers

Daniel González-Cuadra, Alejandro Bermudez

SciPost Phys. 19, 130 (2025) · published 18 November 2025 | · pdf

We investigate the emergence of bond-directional spin-spin interactions in a synthetic Fermi-Hubbard bilayer that can be realized with ultracold fermions in Raman optical lattices. The model exploits synthetic dimensions to couple two honeycomb layers, each corresponding to a different hyperfine atomic state, via Raman-assisted tunneling and, moreover, via an inter-layer Hubbard repulsion due to the cold-atom scattering. In the strong-coupling regime at half filling, we derive effective spin Hamiltonians for the kinetic exchange featuring Kitaev, Heisenberg, off-diagonal exchange ($\Gamma$-couplings), as well as tunable Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interactions. We identify specific configurations that generate both ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic Kitaev couplings with various perturbations of relevance to Kitaev materials, providing a tunable platform that can explore how quantum spin liquids emerge from itinerant fermion systems. We analyze the Fermi-liquid and Mott-insulating phases, highlighting a correspondence between Dirac and Majorana quasi-particles, with possible phase transitions thereof. In an extreme anisotropic limit, we show that the model reduces to an inter-layer ribbon in a quasi-1D ladder, allowing for a numerical study of the correlated ground state using matrix product states. We find a transition from a symmetry-protected topological insulator to a Kitaev-like regime characterized by nonlocal string order. Our results establish that cold-atom quantum simulators based on Raman optical lattices can be a playground for extended Kitaev models, bridging itinerant fermionic systems and spin-liquid physics.
Spin of fractional quantum Hall neutral modes and “missing states” on a sphere

Dung Xuan Nguyen, Dam Thanh Son

SciPost Phys. 19, 131 (2025) · published 18 November 2025 | · pdf

A low-energy neutral quasiparticle in a fractional quantum Hall system appears in the latter's energy spectrum on a sphere as a series of many-body excited states labeled by the angular momentum $L$ and whose energy is a smooth function of $L$ in the limit of large sphere radius. We argue that the signature of a nonvanishing spin (intrinsic angular momentum) $s$ of the quasiparticle is the absence, in this series, of states with total angular momentum less than $s$. We reinterpret the missing of certain states, observed in an exact-diagonalization calculation of the spectrum of the $\nu=7/3$ FQH state in a wide quantum well as well as in many proposed wave functions for the excited states as a consequence of the spin-2 nature of the zero-momentum magnetoroton.
Quench dynamics of entanglement from crosscap states

Konstantinos Chalas, Pasquale Calabrese, Colin Rylands

SciPost Phys. 19, 132 (2025) · published 19 November 2025 | · pdf

The linear growth of entanglement after a quench from a state with short-range correlations is a universal feature of many body dynamics. It has been shown to occur in integrable and chaotic systems undergoing either Hamiltonian, Floquet or circuit dynamics and has also been observed in experiments. The entanglement dynamics emerging from long-range correlated states is far less studied, although no less viable using modern quantum simulation experiments. In this work, we investigate the dynamics of the bipartite entanglement entropy and mutual information from initial states which have long-range entanglement with correlation between antipodal points of a finite and periodic system. Starting from these crosscap states, we study both brickwork quantum circuits and Hamiltonian dynamics and find distinct patterns of behaviour depending on the type of dynamics and whether the system is integrable or chaotic. Specifically, we study both dual unitary and random unitary quantum circuits as well as free and interacting fermion Hamiltonians. For integrable systems, we find that after a time delay the entanglement experiences a linear in time decrease followed by a series of revivals, while, in contrast, chaotic systems exhibit constant entanglement entropy. On the other hand, both types of systems experience an immediate linear decrease of the mutual information in time. In chaotic systems this then vanishes, whereas integrable systems instead experience a series of revivals. We show how the quasiparticle and membrane pictures of entanglement dynamics can be modified to describe this behaviour, and derive explicitly the quasiparticle picture in the case of free fermion models which we then extend to all integrable systems.
Multicomponent one-dimensional quantum droplets across the mean-field stability regime

I. A. Englezos, P. Schmelcher, S. I. Mistakidis

SciPost Phys. 19, 133 (2025) · published 24 November 2025 | · pdf

The Lee-Huang-Yang (LHY) energy correction at the edge of the mean-field stability regime is known to give rise to beyond mean-field structures in a wide variety of systems. In this work, we analytically derive the LHY energy for two-, three- and four-component one-dimensional bosonic short-range interacting mixtures across the mean-field stability regime. For varying intercomponent attraction in the two-component setting, quantitative deviations from the original LHY treatment emerge being imprinted in the droplet saturation density and width. On the other hand, for repulsive interactions an unseen early onset of phase-separation occurs for both homonuclear and heteronuclear mixtures. Closed LHY expressions for the fully-symmetric three- and four-component mixtures, as well as for mixtures comprised of two identical components coupled to a third independent component are provided and found to host a plethora of mixed droplet states. Our results are expected to inspire future investigations in multicomponent systems for unveiling exotic self-bound states of matter and unravel their nonequilibrium quantum dynamics.
Bubbling saddles of the gravitational index

Davide Cassani, Alejandro Ruipérez, Enrico Turetta

SciPost Phys. 19, 134 (2025) · published 24 November 2025 | · pdf

We consider the five-dimensional supergravity path integral that computes a supersymmetric index, and uncover a wealth of semiclassical saddles with bubbling topology. These are complex finite-temperature configurations asymptotic to $S^1×\mathbb{R}^4$, solving the supersymmetry equations. We assume a $\mathrm{U}(1)^3$ symmetry given by the thermal isometry and two rotations, and present a general construction based on a rod structure specifying the fixed loci of the $\mathrm{U}(1)$ isometries and their three-dimensional topology. These fixed loci may correspond to multiple horizons or three-dimensional bubbles, and they may have $S^3$, $S^2× S^1$, or lens space topology. Allowing for conical singularities gives additional topologies involving spindles and branched spheres or branched lens spaces. As a particularly significant example, we analyze in detail the configurations with a horizon and a bubble just outside of it. We determine the possible saddle-point contribution of these configurations to the gravitational index by evaluating their on-shell action and the relevant thermodynamic relations. We also spell out two limits leading to well-defined Lorentzian solutions. The first is the extremal limit, which gives the known BPS black ring and black lens solutions. The on-shell action and chemical potentials remain well-defined in this limit and should thus provide the contribution of the black ring and black lens to the gravitational index. The second is a limit leading to horizonless bubbling solutions, which have purely imaginary action.
Rashba spin-orbit coupling and nonlocal correlations in disordered 2D systems

Yongtai Li, Gour Jana, Chinedu E. Ekuma

SciPost Phys. 19, 135 (2025) · published 24 November 2025 | · pdf

We present an extension of the dynamical cluster approximation (DCA) that incorporates Rashba spin-orbit coupling (SOC) to investigate the interplay between disorder, spin-orbit interaction, and nonlocal spatial correlations in disordered two-dimensional systems. By analyzing the average density of states, momentum-resolved self-energy, and return probability, we demonstrate how Rashba SOC and nonlocal correlations jointly modify single-particle properties and spin-dependent interference. The method captures key features of the symplectic universality class, including SOC-induced delocalization signatures at finite times. We benchmark the DCA results against those obtained from the numerically exact kernel polynomial method, finding good agreement. This validates the computationally efficient, mean-field-based DCA framework as a robust tool for exploring disorder, spin-orbit coupling, and nonlocal correlation effects in low-dimensional systems, and paves the way for simulating multiorbital and strongly correlated systems that were previously inaccessible due to computational limitations.
On the difference between thermalization in open and isolated quantum systems: A case study

Archak Purkayastha, Giacomo Guarnieri, Janet Anders, Marco Merkli

SciPost Phys. 19, 136 (2025) · published 25 November 2025 | · pdf

Thermalization of isolated and open quantum systems has been studied extensively. However, being the subject of investigation by different scientific communities and being analysed using different mathematical tools, the connection between the isolated (IQS) and open (OQS) approaches to thermalization has remained opaque. Here we demonstrate that the fundamental difference between the two paradigms is the order in which the long time and the thermodynamic limits are taken. This difference implies that they describe physics on widely different time and length scales. Our analysis is carried out numerically for the case of a double quantum dot (DQD) coupled to a fermionic lead, also known as the interacting resonant level model in quantum impurity physics. We show how both OQS and IQS thermalization can be explored in this model on equal footing, allowing a fair comparison between the two. We find that while the quadratically coupled (free) DQD experiences no isolated thermalization, it of course does experience open thermalization. For the non-linearly interacting DQD coupled to a fermionic lead, the many-body interaction in the DQD breaks the integrability of the whole system. We find that this system shows strong evidence of both OQS and IQS thermalization in the same dynamics, but at widely different time scales, consistent with reversing the order of the long time and the thermodynamic limits.
Superconductivity enhancement and particle-hole asymmetry: Interplay with electron attraction in doped Hubbard model

Zhi Xu, Hong-Chen Jiang, Yi-Fan Jiang

SciPost Phys. 19, 137 (2025) · published 25 November 2025 | · pdf

The role of near-neighbor electron attraction $V$ in strongly correlated systems has been at the forefront of recent research of unconventional superconductivity. However, its implications in the doped Hubbard model on expansive systems remain predominantly unexplored. In this study, we employ the density-matrix renormalization group to examine its effect in the lightly doped $t$-$t'$-Hubbard model on six-leg square cylinders, where $t$ and $t'$ are the first and second neighbor electron hopping amplitudes. In the electron-doped regime ($t'>0$), we find that attractive $V$ can substantially enhance superconducting correlations, driving the system into a pronounced superconducting phase when the attraction exceeds a modest value $V_c ≈ 0.5t$. In contrast, in the hole-doped regime ($t' <0$), while heightened superconducting correlations have also been observed in the charge stripe phase, the systems remain insulating with pronounced charge density wave order. Our results demonstrate the importance of the electron attraction in boosting superconductivity in broader doped Hubbard systems and highlight the asymmetry between the electron and hole-doped regimes.
Mechanical work extraction from an error-prone active dynamic Szilard engine

Luca Cocconi, Paolo Malgaretti, Holger Stark

SciPost Phys. 19, 138 (2025) · published 25 November 2025 | · pdf

Isothermal information engines operate by extracting net work from a single heat bath through measurement and feedback control. In this work, we analyze a {realistic} active Szilard engine operating on a single self-propelled particle by means of steric interaction with an externally controlled mechanical element. In particular, we provide a comprehensive study of how finite measurement accuracy affects the engine's work and power output, as well as the cost of operation. Having established the existence of non-trivial optima for work and power output, we study the dependence of their loci on the measurement error parameters and identify conditions for their positivity under one-shot and cyclic engine operation. We also demonstrate that a suitably defined efficiency of information-to-work conversion, which at equilibrium is bounded above by unity as a consequence of Landauer's principle, may here be made arbitrarily large by increasing the active Péclet number of the particle. Equivalently, for such a nonequilibrium efficiency to remain bounded above by unity, the athermal motion of the bath particles needs to be accounted for explicitly. Notably, the information efficiency for one-shot operation exhibits a discontinuous transition and a non-monotonic dependence on the measurement precision. Finally, we show that cyclic operation improves information efficiency by harvesting residual mutual information between successive measurements.
Searching for strongly coupled AdS matter with multi-trace deformations

Luis Apolo, Alexandre Belin, Suzanne Bintanja

SciPost Phys. 19, 139 (2025) · published 27 November 2025 | · pdf

Holographic CFTs admit a dual emergent description in terms of semiclassical general relativity minimally coupled to matter fields. While the gravitational interactions are required to be suppressed by the Planck scale, the matter sector is allowed to interact strongly at the AdS scale. From the perspective of the dual CFT, this requires breaking large-$N$ factorization in certain sectors of the theory. Exactly marginal multi-trace deformations are capable of achieving this while still preserving a consistent large-$N$ limit. We probe the effect of these deformations on the bulk theory by computing the relevant four-point functions in conformal perturbation theory. We find a simple answer in terms of a finite sum of conformal blocks, indicating that the correlators display no bulk-point singularities. This implies that the matter of the bulk theory is made strongly coupled by boundary terms rather than local bulk interactions. Our results suggest that holographic CFTs that describe strongly coupled AdS matter must be isolated points on the CFT landscape or sit infinitely far away on the conformal manifold from conventional holographic CFTs.
Impurity effect and vortex cluster phase in mesoscopic type-1.5 superconductors

Tian-Yi Han, Guo Wang, Jie Li, Hai Huang

SciPost Phys. 19, 140 (2025) · published 28 November 2025 | · pdf

Based on two-band time-dependent Ginzburg-Landau theory, we study the electromagnetic properties of two-band mesoscopic superconductors. We perform the numerical simulations with the finite element method, and determine the minimum sample size $L_c$ for the existence of the type-1.5 superconductivity from the obtained phase diagram in the absence of impurity. Meanwhile in the presence of an isotropic impurity, our numerical results reveal that the vortex cluster state induced by the attractive defect potential will gradually appear in the mesoscopic system with the sample size $L < L_c$, and the critical defect strength is about 0.2 in the $T_c$ disorder model. In addition, we also investigate the effect of anisotropic defect structures and multiple correlated disorders on the patterns of magnetic vortex distributions. Our theoretical study thus indicates that the diversity of impurity depositions has a significant influence on the semi-Meissner state in mesoscopic type-1.5 superconductors.