Skip to content
DraconiticResearch
Search Sources API
203,203 studies31 sourcesUpdated 37 min ago
Peer-reviewedCC BY 4.0The European Physical Journal C

Quantum criticality and mixed-state entanglement in holographic superconductor–insulator transitions

  • Zhe Yang1
  • Fang-Jing Cheng2,3,4
  • Guoyang Fu1
  • Yi Ling3,4
  • Peng Liu5
  • Jian-Pin Wu1
5 affiliations
  1. 1Yangzhou University
  2. 2Beijing Normal University
  3. 3Chinese Academy of Sciences
  4. 4University of Chinese Academy of Sciences
  5. 5Jinan University
Open at sourcePDFDOICite

Abstract

We study quantum criticality in a holographic Einstein–Maxwell–Dilaton–Axion (EMDA) p-wave superconductor exhibiting a superconductor–insulator transition (SIT). By tracking the superconducting energy gap, we show that approaching the quantum critical point (QCP) closes the gap and induces incipient insulating features, indicating that enhanced quantum fluctuations suppress superconducting order and trigger the SIT. We suggest that this behavior occurs only when the condensate orientation is aligned with the direction of translational symmetry breaking. To probe the transition, we employ two holographic indicators: holographic entanglement entropy (HEE) and the entanglement wedge cross-section (EWCS), the latter being a mixed-state entanglement measure. In contrast to HEE, which for sufficiently large configuration is dominated by the thermal entropy and is therefore largely insensitive to entanglement along the temperature direction, EWCS displays pronounced critical scaling and provides a robust diagnostic of the quantum phase transition (QPT). We attribute this contrast to the fact that HEE at large scales is controlled by the infrared (IR) geometry, whereas EWCS is governed by deformations of the entire bulk. Our results establish EWCS as a robust probe of holographic quantum criticality in mixed states.

Related

  1. Deconfined criticality between an antiferromagnetic insulator and a nodal d-wave superconductor: a quantum Monte Carlo study
    Chuang Chen, Subir Sachdev, Zi Yang Meng
    arXivPreprintarXiv licenceFull textCondensed matterarXiv
  2. Deconfined criticality between an antiferromagnetic insulator and a nodal d-wave superconductor: A quantum Monte Carlo study
    Chuang Chen, Subir Sachdev, Zi Yang Meng
    Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of AmericaPeer-reviewedCC BY-NC-ND 4.0Full textCondensed matterPMC
  3. Holographic subregion complexity in insulator/superconductor transition
    Yu Shi, Chikun Ding, Yuebing Zhou +2
    arXivPreprintarXiv licenceFull textHigh-energy & particle physicsarXiv
  4. Holographic CFT phase transitions and criticality for Einstein–Maxwell–Power–Yang–Mills AdS black holes
    Mohammad Reza Alipour, Mohammad Ali S. Afshar, Saeed Noori Gashti +1
    The European Physical Journal CPeer-reviewedCC BY 4.0Full textHigh-energy & particle physicsSpringerCrossref
  5. Entanglement transitions in holographic conformal interfaces
    Evangelos Afxonidis, Rotem Berman, Ignacio Carreño Bolla +3
    arXivPreprintCC BY-NC-SA 4.0Full textCondensed matterHigh-energy & particle physicsarXiv

Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{yang2026quantum,
  title = {{Quantum criticality and mixed-state entanglement in holographic superconductor–insulator transitions}},
  author = {Zhe Yang and Fang-Jing Cheng and Guoyang Fu and Yi Ling and Peng Liu and Jian-Pin Wu},
  journal = {The European Physical Journal C},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.1140/epjc/s10052-026-16510-5},
  url = {https://link.springer.com/article/10.1140/epjc/s10052-026-16510-5},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Quantum criticality and mixed-state entanglement in holographic superconductor–insulator transitions
AU  - Zhe Yang
AU  - Fang-Jing Cheng
AU  - Guoyang Fu
AU  - Yi Ling
AU  - Peng Liu
AU  - Jian-Pin Wu
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/29
JO  - The European Physical Journal C
DO  - 10.1140/epjc/s10052-026-16510-5
UR  - https://link.springer.com/article/10.1140/epjc/s10052-026-16510-5
AB  - We study quantum criticality in a holographic Einstein–Maxwell–Dilaton–Axion (EMDA) p-wave superconductor exhibiting a superconductor–insulator transition (SIT). By tracking the superconducting energy gap, we show that approaching the quantum critical point (QCP) closes the gap and induces incipient insulating features, indicating that enhanced quantum fluctuations suppress superconducting order and trigger the SIT. We suggest that this behavior occurs only when the condensate orientation is aligned with the direction of translational symmetry breaking. To probe the transition, we employ two holographic indicators: holographic entanglement entropy (HEE) and the entanglement wedge cross-section (EWCS), the latter being a mixed-state entanglement measure. In contrast to HEE, which for sufficiently large configuration is dominated by the thermal entropy and is therefore largely insensitive to entanglement along the temperature direction, EWCS displays pronounced critical scaling and provides a robust diagnostic of the quantum phase transition (QPT). We attribute this contrast to the fact that HEE at large scales is controlled by the infrared (IR) geometry, whereas EWCS is governed by deformations of the entire bulk. Our results establish EWCS as a robust probe of holographic quantum criticality in mixed states.
SN  - 1434-6052
SN  - 1434-6044
ER  -