Dynamics of the Geometric Phase in Inhomogeneous Quantum Spin Chains

Abstract: The dynamics of the geometric phase are studied in inhomogeneous quantum spin chains after a quench. Analytic expressions of the Pancharatnam geometric phase (PGP) $\mathcal{G}(t)$ are derived, for both the period-two quantum Ising chain (QIC) and the disordered QIC. In the period-two QIC, due to the periodic modulation, the PGP changes with time at the boundary of the Brillouin zone, and consequently, the winding number $\nu_{D}(t)=\int_{0}^{\pi}[\partial\phi_{k}^{G}(t)/\partial k]dk/2\pi$ based on the PGP is not quantized and thus not topological anymore. Nevertheless, the PGP and its winding number show non-analytic singularities at the critical times of the dynamical quantum phase transitions (DQPTs). This relation between the PGP and the DQPT is further confirmed in the disordered QIC, where the winding number is not defined. It is found that the critical time of DQPT inherited from the homogeneous system and the additional one induced by the weak disorder are also accompanied by the non-analytic singularity of the PGP, by decomposing the PGP into each quasiparticle mode. The connection between the non-analytic behavior of the PGP at the critical time and the DQPT, regardless of whether the winding number is topological, can be explained by the fact that they both arise when the Loschmidt amplitude vanishes.