Can quantum many-body scars survive at a quantum phase transition? In this webinar, researchers from QuEra Computing, the University of Leeds, and the Institute of Physics in Belgrade present the first experimental realization of a continuous family of quantum many-body scar states in a U(1) lattice gauge theory — simulated on QuEra's Aquila neutral-atom quantum computer.

Key topics covered:

• How the quantum link model maps onto the PXP Hamiltonian via the Gauss law, and why Rydberg atom arrays are a natural simulator for lattice gauge theories
• The discovery that scarring not only persists at the critical point, but that the critical ground state — despite having divergent entanglement entropy — is one of the strongest reviving states in the entire phase diagram
• How defects from the Kibble-Zurek mechanism affect post-quench dynamics, and why the type of defect (paired vs. unpaired) matters more than the total number
• An unexplained domain alignment effect that goes beyond conventional Kibble-Zurek theory

Speakers: Tommaso Macri (QuEra), Zlatko Papic (University of Leeds), Milan Kornjaca (QuEra), Anna Hudomal (Institute of Physics, Belgrade)

ArXiv: [link]

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