Graviton modes in fractional quantum hall liquids

Abstract

The fractional quantum Hall fluid is a two-dimensional quantum fluid of electrons subject to a strong magnetic field at low temperatures. Neutral excitations in a fractional quantum Hall droplet define the incompressibility gap of the topological phase. Among these states, there are some specific modes in the long-wavelength limit that can be understood as “spin-2 gravitons”. In this thesis, we will introduce a set of analytical results for the energy gap of the graviton modes for model Hamiltonians in the thermodynamic limit, which is governed by a well-defined and universal characteristic tensor. These results can help to construct model Hamiltonians for the graviton modes of different FQH phases and elucidate a hierarchical structure of conformal Hilbert spaces (null spaces of model Hamiltonians) containing the graviton modes and their corresponding ground states. An isomorphism can be defined for these conformal Hilbert spaces, and the mapping between them can be regarded as a more rigorous and general reinterpretation of the composite fermionization of FQH states, with naturally emergent composite fermions (each consisting of one electron and an even number of fluxes). The results from exact diagonalization will be shown, which confirm that for gapped phases, low-lying neutral excitations can undergo a phase transition even when the ground state remains in the same phase. Furthermore, the gaplessness of the Gaffnian state could be testified based on this formalism with further numerical experiments.

Recently there has been numerical evidence implying the signature of multiple graviton modes. We will introduce the microscopic theory for the emergence of multiple gravitons in fractional quantum Hall droplets based on composite fermionization and the well-defined particle-hole conjugate within a specific conformal Hilbert space. This reveals the dynamical nature of this phenomenon and provides theoretical insights into the chirality and the “merging and splitting” behaviors of the graviton modes. The experimental relevance of multiple graviton modes will be discussed. The microscopic theory of gravitons can also provide valuable insights into the field-theoretical approaches.