Observation of many-body dynamical localization.

Guo, Yanliang; Dhar, Sudipta; Yang, Ang; Chen, Zekai; Yao, Hepeng; Horvath, Milena; Ying, Lei; Landini, Manuele et al. · Science · 2025

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

The quantum kicked rotor is a paradigmatic model system in quantum physics. As a driven quantum system, it features dynamical localization, specifically Anderson localization in momentum space. However, the interacting many-body kicked rotor is believed to break localization. Here, we present evidence for many-body dynamical localization for the Lieb-Liniger version of the many-body quantum kicked rotor. After some initial evolution, the momentum distribution of interacting quantum-degenerate bosonic atoms in one-dimensional geometry, kicked hundreds of times by means of a pulsed sinusoidal potential, stops spreading. Our results shed light on the boundary between the classical, chaotic world and the realm of quantum physics.