{
  "abstract": "Deconfined quantum critical points (DQCPs) describe continuous transitions between ordered phases beyond the Landau paradigm. A simple example is the Néel antiferromagnet (AFM) to valence bond solid (VBS) transition in a 1D antiferromagnetic $J_1-J_2$ model. In analogy to the spin-Peierls instability of critical spin chains, DQCPs are predicted to be unstable towards lattice distortions below a critical phonon frequency. In this work, we use tensor network simulations to investigate this instability in the antiferromagnetic $J_1-J_2$ model coupled to lattice vibrations. We confirm the stability of DQCP for large phonon frequencies and demonstrate that the transition turns strongly first-order below a critical frequency. The instability is caused by a reduction of the Luttinger parameter due to spin-phonon interactions and we identify the effective theory of the behavior as the double sine-Gordon model. The same effective theory is known to describe the classical Ashkin-Teller model, which enables us to show that the critical endpoint is in the four-state Potts universality class. We argue based on non-linear bosonization that the sign of the double-frequency term is fixed, which provides a microscopic justification for the first-order transition. Furthermore, we provide quantitative numerical scaling results for the phonon spectral function, offering an experimental signature to probe DQCP-phonon coupling in low-dimensional materials.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": "2606.06605",
  "author_total": 5,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Anton Romen"
    },
    {
      "name": "Josef Willsher"
    },
    {
      "name": "David Hofmeier"
    },
    {
      "name": "Johannes Knolle"
    },
    {
      "name": "Michael Knap"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/fk0b5cf65tg5z.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.48550/arxiv.2606.06605",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "fk0b5cf65tg5z",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2606.06605",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": "CC0-1.0",
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "arxiv",
      "cond-mat.str-el"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "3107|Quantum many-body systems"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7163923404",
  "pdf_url": "https://arxiv.org/pdf/2606.06605",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-01",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/fk0b5cf65tg5z.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:26:03Z",
      "native_id": "2606.06605",
      "source": "arxiv",
      "url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2606.06605"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "physics",
      "origin": "arxiv:cond-mat.str-el",
      "subfield": "condensed-matter"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Tensor network study of deconfined quantum criticality in a one-dimensional spin-phonon model",
  "title_text": "Tensor network study of deconfined quantum criticality in a one-dimensional spin-phonon model",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:26:03Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/fk0b5cf65tg5z",
  "venue": "arXiv",
  "versions": []
}