Dynamics of the spin-1/2 Heisenberg chain initialized in a domain-wall state

Grégoire Misguich (1) , Kirone Mallick (1) , P. L. Krapivsky (1)

1 IPHT - Institut de Physique Théorique - UMR CNRS 3681

We study the dynamics of an isotropic spin-1/2 Heisenberg chain starting in a domain-wall initial condition, where the spins are initially up on the left half-line and down on the right half-line. We focus on the long time behavior of the magnetization profile. We perform extensive time-dependent density-matrix renormalization group simulations (up to $t$ = 350) and find that the data are compatible with a diffusive behavior. Subleading corrections decay slowly blurring the emergence of the diffusive behavior. We also compare our results with two alternative scenarios: superdiffusive behavior and enhanced diffusion with a logarithmic correction. We finally discuss the evolution of the entanglement entropy.

Domains: Physics [physics]

Grégoire Misguich, Kirone Mallick, P. L. Krapivsky. Dynamics of the spin-1/2 Heisenberg chain initialized in a domain-wall state. Physical Review B: Condensed Matter and Materials Physics (1998-2015), 2018, 96, pp.195151. ⟨10.1103/PhysRevB.96.195151⟩. ⟨cea-01753373⟩