Quench Spectroscopy of a Disordered Quantum System

Abstract: The characterization of excitations in disordered quantum systems is a central issue in connection with glass physics and many-body localization. Here, we show that quench spectroscopy of a disordered model, as realized from its out-of-equilibrium dynamics following a global quench, allows us to fully characterize the spectral properties of the disordered phases. In the Bose-Hubbard model, a clear signature of gapless excitations in momentum-resolved spectroscopy enables us to accurately locate the Mott insulator to Bose glass transition, while the presence or absence of a well-defined soundlike mode distinguishes the superfluid from the Bose glass phase. Moreover, spatially-resolved spectroscopy provides local spectral properties and allows us to extract the typical spacing of gapless regions, giving a second independent way to uniquely identify all three phases. Our findings have far-ranging implications for a variety of experimental platforms, and offer a powerful and versatile probe of the low-energy phases of disordered systems.