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# Quantum Computation and the localization of Modular Functors 11footnote 1Based on lectures prepared for the joint Microsoft/University of Washington celebration of mathematics April 2000 and the AMS meeting on mathematics in the new millennium UCLA, August 2000.

## 1 The Picture Principle

Reality has the habit of intruding on the prodigies of purest thought and encumbering them with unpleasant embellishments. So it is astonishing when the chthonian hammer of the engineer resonates precisely to the gossamer fluttering of theory. Such a moment may soon be at hand in the practice and theory of quantum computation. The most compelling theoretical question, $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$localization,” is yielding an answer which points the way to a solution of Quantum Computing’s (QC) most daunting engineering problem: reaching the accuracy threshold for fault tolerant computation.

After Shor’s discovery \[S1\] of a polynomial time factoring algorithm in the quantum model QC, skeptics properly questioned whether a unitary evolution could ever be induced to process information fault tolerantly. The most obvious tricks, such as making a backup copy, useful in a dissipative system (e.g. pencil and paper) are unavailable in quantum mechanics. To overcome these difficulties, a remarkable theoretical framework based on $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$stabilizer codes,” $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$transversal gates,” $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$cat-state-ancilli, ” and nested concatenations of these was erected \[S2\], \[S3\], \[A,B-O\], \[K1\], and \[KLZ\]. While the result is a consistent recipe for fault-tolerant quantum computation, the accuracy threshold which would allow this combinatorial behemoth to overcome its own overhead has been estimated as about $`10^6`$, one i.i.d. error per one million physical gate operations and requiring gates accurate also to one part in a million. This places a formidable task before the engineer and physicist. But within the year the beginnings of a new idea on fault tolerance had been generated by Kitaev \[K2\].

While the term is not yet present in that paper the idea is to construct (first mathematically) a $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$quantum medium” and to store quantum states as topological structures within the medium and (eventually) manipulate these states, that is, apply gates to them, by topological transformations of the medium. For our purposes, we define a quantum medium as a collection of many finite level systems coupled together by a Hamiltonian $`H`$ obeying a strong locality condition: The individual systems are located in a $`2`$dimensional lattice or a more irregular cellulation of a surface $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$. We postulate a constant $`d>0`$ so that $`H=\mathrm{\Sigma }\overline{H}_k`$ and each $`\overline{H}_k=H_k`$id, where the identity is on all tensor factors(= subsystem) not located within some ball $`B_{\mathrm{}}`$ of diameter $`d`$ in the lattice. For example, the Heisenberg magnet with $`H=J\underset{a,b=\text{edge}}{\mathrm{\Sigma }}\stackrel{}{\sigma }_a\stackrel{}{\sigma }_b`$ is a quantum medium of diameter $`=1`$. (But engineer be warned; localizing $`H^{\mathrm{}}`$ within balls of diameter $`=d`$ implies $`n`$ary interaction for $`nd^2`$. Controlling effective $`n`$ary terms for $`n2`$ will be tricky in the extreme and probably will require enforcing symmetries to cancel lower order terms.) Kitaev’s $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$toric code” \[K2\] in which quantum states are stored as first homology of a torus, can be counted as having $`d=2`$; they require $`4`$ary interactions.

We study here a partial generalization of the toric code which also stores quantum information in a degenerate ground state $`V(\mathrm{\Sigma })`$ of a quantum medium. The medium is on a disk with point-like defects which we treat as punctures. The dimension of $`V(\mathrm{\Sigma })`$, $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$ the punctured disk, grows exponentially with the number of punctures. Transformations of $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$, that is braidings (up to isotopy) of the punctures in space-time, $`\mathrm{\Sigma }\times R`$, operate unitarily on $`V(\mathrm{\Sigma })`$. Other work (\[K2\], \[P\], and \[K,B\]) also explores the realization of elements of computation by braiding anyonic $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$quasi-particles” or $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$defects” of a quantum medium.

The vision is that stability of computation, at least sufficient to reach the $`10^6`$ threshold for $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$software” error correction, is to be realized by the discreteness of algebraic topology: two $`Z_2`$homology cycles are never $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$close,” two words in the braid group are equal or distinct. More exactly, it is geometry not topology which will confer stability. Working in a lattice model one may calculate \[K2\] that the perturbation Hamiltonian $`P`$ must be raised to the length scale $`L`$ before nonzero terms, $`<\zeta |P^L|\eta >,\zeta ,\eta `$ ground state $`(H)`$, are encountered and so the splitting of the ground state is estimated to be proportional to $`e^{\mathrm{\Omega }(L)}`$. The length scale in the previous two examples are: $`L=`$ (length of shortest essential cycle); and in the anyonic context, the closest that two defects are allowed to come to each other during braiding. The $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$engineering goal” is to construct a physical quantum medium on a material disk whose ground state admits many localized excitations ($`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$anyons”) whose braidings effect computationally universal unitary transformations of the ground state. It is further hoped that actual $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$errors,” the result of unwanted noisy excitations, are to be removed automatically by some relaxation process in which the system is coupled to a cold bath by another much weaker Hamiltonian $`H^{}`$. The mathematicians first cut at the engineering goal is to produce a mathematical quantum medium with these properties and this is accomplished by the theorem below. This $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$first cut” is not yet interesting to experimentalists since the Hamiltonian contains summands which have as many as $`30`$ nontrivial indices, but it represents an exact existence theorem. The question for physicist is whether this phase can also be represented perturbatively with a simple Hamiltonian, perhaps a RVB model \[A\], \[N,S\]. This would be a major step toward physical realization.

###### Theorem 1.1.

Consider a rectangle $`R`$ of Euclidian square lattice consisting of $`15`$ boxes by $`30n`$ boxes. Associate a $`2`$level spin system $`^2`$ with each of the $`e:=960n+36`$ box edges in $`R`$. The disjoint union of these spin systems has Hilbert space $`(^2)^e=:X`$. There is a time dependent local Hamiltonian $`H_t=\left(\underset{𝑘}{\mathrm{\Sigma }}\overline{H}_{k,t}\right)`$ with fewer than $`2000n`$ terms and each $`H_k`$ having $`30`$ or fewer indices, supported in at most a $`5\times 3`$ rectangle of boxes - $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$diameter $`=5`$.” For $`t=0`$, the ground states of $`H_0`$ form a sub-Hilbert space $`WX`$, and geometrically determines $`3n`$ exceptional points or $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$defects” spaced out along the midline of $`R`$. Within $`W`$ there is a $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$computational” sub-Hilbert space $`V(^2)^n`$, $`VW.`$ $`W`$ may be identified with the $`SU(2)`$Witten-Chern-Simons modular functor at level $`ł=r2=3`$ of the $`3n`$punctured disk with the fundamental representation of $`SU(2)`$ labeling each of the $`3n+1`$ boundary components. The Braid group $`B(3n)`$ of the defects acts unitarily on $`W`$ according to the Jones’ representation at level $`=5`$. Any quantum algorithm can be efficiently simulated on $`V`$ by restricting the action of $`B(3n)`$ to a $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$computational subspace.”

The representation is implemented adiabatically by gradually deforming $`H_t`$ to $`H_{t+1}`$ and then to $`H_{t+2}`$ and so on. The passage from $`H_t`$ to $`H_{t+1}`$ involves turning off an exceptional term $`\overline{H}_{k,t}`$ which defines a defect site and turning on a new term $`\overline{H}_{k,tH}`$, which determines an alternative, adjacent, site for the defect at time $`t+1`$. Each braid generator can be implemented in $`4(r+1)`$ times steps. We believe, based on a conjectural energy gap, that the geometry confers stability to this implementation which increases exponentially, error = $`e^{\mathrm{\Omega }(L)}`$, under refinement of the lattice on $`R`$ by a factor of $`L`$, while the number of time step needed for a computation increases only linearly in $`L`$.

###### Comments 1.2.

* The second paragraph of the theorem should be read as a defensible physical proposition, whereas the first paragraph is mathematics.
* Our Hamiltonian may be too complicated to prove the persistence of an energy gap above the ground state in the thermodynamic limit. But based on an analogy with a simpler system the gap is conjectured and will be discussed at the end of the proof.
* The passage from the Jones’ representation to computation on $`V`$ is the subject of \[FLW1\] and \[FLW2\] where it is proved that universality holds for $`r=5`$ and $`r7`$. Functorially $`V`$ is a tensor summand of a subspace of $`W`$ but by fixing a reference vector in the complementary tensor factor we regard $`V`$ simply as a subspace of $`W`$.
* The idea of anyonic computation is taken from \[K2\] and in a more speculative form \[Fr\]. The new ingredient is the implementation of a computationally complete modular functor by a local Hamiltonian. Witten’s approach \[Wi\] to CSr was Lagrangian and so nonlocal; it yields an identically zero Hamiltonian under Legendre transform, \[FKW\] and \[A\]. This lecture, in contrast, supplies a Hamiltonian interpretation for CS5 (We may replace $`5`$ by any $`r7`$ in the statement at the expense of scaling the constants in the theorem by $`\frac{r}{5}`$ or $`\frac{r^2}{25}`$ according to whether they scale as lengths or areas.).
* We know of two works in progress with a similar objective. Kitaev and Bravyi \[K,B\] study a local model for the weaker functor CS4 on high genus surfaces, and Kitaev and Kupperberg \[K,K\] have an approach to construct local Hamiltonians generally for modular functors on surfaces of any genus which (unlike CS5) are quantum doubles \[D\]. Their approach has the advantage that the local contributions to the Hamiltonian can be arranged to commute so that an energy gap will be rigorously established. In contrast, an interesting feature of the present paper is that topological a combinatorial means yield an exact determination of a ground state defined by non-commuting terms. This is not usually possible. Finally, we will see that our local construction for $`H`$ extends to the higher genus surfaces if CSr is replaced by any modular functors of the form $`VV^{}`$. The simple topological reason for this may illuminate the analysis of \[K,K\].
* Shortly, we will give the reader a completely pictorial understanding of CSr on planar surfaces.

So far, we have only discussed the $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$engineering”: the quest to specify $`H`$ (which will be described in the proof). Let us take a brief digression from that sulfurous underworld of grinding gears to the Elysian fields of abstract thought. The Witten-Chern-Simons theory descends from the signature (= Pontryagin form) in dimension 4 and every step of the desent to lower dimension leads to deeper abstraction until mathematical wit is well nigh exhausted as the point (dimension $`=0`$) is reached. To tell this story in its barest outline, we restrict to $`G=SU(2)`$, and borrow from Atiyah \[A\], Freed \[F\], and Walker \[W\]. The signature of a closed $`4`$manifold is an integer as is the Pontryagin class of an $`SU(2)`$ bundle over a closed $`4`$manifold. An $`SU(2)`$bundle over a closed $`3`$manifold is topologically trivial but if endowed with a connection acquires a secondary $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$ Chern-Simons” class in the circle $`=R/𝒵`$. Quantizing \[Wi\] at level $`ł`$, leads to the topological Jones-Witten-Chern-Simons invariant $``$ which is morally an average of the classical Chern-Simons invariant over all connections. The invariant for a closed surface $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$ (with some additional structure) is a finite dimensional vector space $`V`$; and each $`3`$manifold bounding $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$ determines a vector $`vV`$. Before dividing by gauge symmetry, the vector space $`\overline{V}`$ is the infinite dimensional space of sections of the associated complex line bundle to a natural $`S^1`$bundle over the space of $`SU(2)`$ connections $`A`$ on $`SU(2)`$ bundles over $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$. A $`3`$manifold $`Y`$ with connection, $`\overline{A}`$, on a bundle extending the bundle over the boundary, $`(Y,\overline{A})=(\mathrm{\Sigma },A)`$, determines a map $`f\{(Y^{},\overline{A^{}})|(Y^{},\overline{A^{}})=(\mathrm{\Sigma },A)\}S^1`$ by integrating the Chern-Simons form over $`YY^{}`$. The consistent choices for such functionals constitute the total space of this $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$natural” $`S^1`$bundle. In general, a map $`f`$ is $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$consistent” if it obeys the additivity properties of the Chern-Simons integral: $`f(Y^{})f(Y^{\prime \prime })=\text{C.S.}(Y^{}Y^{\prime \prime })`$. Symplectic reduction followed by quantization as explained in \[A\] produces a finite dimensional $`V`$ from $`\overline{V}`$ with $`v(Y)V`$ depending only on the topology of $`Y`$. The definition of the Witten-Chern-Simons invariant for a surface with boundary is a collection of vector spaces indexed by certain labelings. For a $`1`$manifold the invariant seems to be a certain type of $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}2`$category” while the correct definition for a point is but dimly perceived and the object of current research. Several authors assert that it is unnecessary to finish the progression, that we can be content with a theory whose smallest building blocks are $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$pairs of pants” (three-punctured- spheres). The invariant for these while technically a vector in a $`2`$vector space is easily understood in terms of sets of vector spaces parameterized by $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$labelings” of the boundary circles so no unusual categorical abstractions need be mastered. The reason for this assertion is that using a handle body decomposition all closed $`3`$manifold invariants can be calculated from gluing along surfaces with smooth boundary; gluings along faces with corners on the boundary, which one would encounter computing from a cellulation, can be avoided. But the Freed-Walker program rejects this advice on two grounds. First localizing $`V(\mathrm{\Sigma })`$ not merely to $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$pants,” but to cells (i.e. neighborhoods of points) may give more natural consistency conditions, to replace the $`14`$ consistency equations of \[W\]; which in turn could eventually lead to classification of modular functors and a conceptual understanding. Second, to paraphrase Edmund Hillary, we should localize to points $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$because they are there.”

The hyperbole of the first paragraph can now be made sound. CS5 is a universal model for quantum computation and for the physicist/engineer to implement it, a local Hamiltonian $`H`$ must be described. For the pure mathematician to be satisfied with his understanding of CS5 it must be localized to points. The two objectives are certainly similar in spirit and possibly identical. To clarify the connection, we introduce an intermediate concept, undoubtedly plebeian, but dear to a topologist. We would like when possible to describe a vector in a modular functor as a linear combinations of $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$admissible” pictures up to $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$equivalence.” This, after all, is exactly how we understand homology: $`vH_1(\mathrm{\Sigma },Z_2)`$ is an equivalence class of admissible pictures. To be admissible the picture must be a closed $`1`$manifold, the equivalence relation is bordism. Both $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}1`$manifold-ness” and $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$bordism” can be defined by local conditions which are the combinatorial analogs of $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$closed” and $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$co-closed” familiar from de Rham’s theory of differential forms. In Kitaev’s toric code these condition are imposed by vertex and face operators $`A_v`$ and $`B_f`$ respectively. There is a subtle shift here from the usual way of thinking of homology as equivalence classes of cycles to the $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$harmonic” representative which is merely the equally weighted average of all cycles in the homology class. In this way quotients and equivalence classes are never encountered and homology is located within cycles, within chains, just as a C.S.S. code space is located within the fixed space of stabilizers built from products of $`\sigma _z`$’s and further within the fixed space of stabilizers, $`\mathrm{\Pi }\sigma _x`$’s.

To generalize from homology, we should think of a picture as (linear combinations of) anything we can draw on a surface $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$. If helpful, we allow various colors and/or notational labels, framing fields, etc$`\mathrm{}`$, and even additional dimensions bundled over $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$. But in the present case no such embellishments are required. What is important that if we move the surface by a diffeomorphism, the picture should also move and move canonically. Thus if $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$ is a torus it would not suite our purposes to draw the picture of $`vV(\mathrm{\Sigma })`$ in a solid torus $`T`$, $`T=\mathrm{\Sigma }`$: a meridial Dehn twist on $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$ extends over $`T`$, twisting the picture, but a longitudinal Dehn twist does not have any obvious way to act on a picture drawn in $`T`$. (To anticipate, a modular functor will have an $`S`$matrix which can transform a picture in one (call it the $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$inside”) solid torus to a picture in the dual ($`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$outside”) solid torus where longitudinal a Dehn twist does act. But resorting to the $`S`$matrix does not solve our problem since its input and output pictures are on a scale of the injectivity radius of the surfaces and hence nonlocal.) We demand that $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$admissibility” and $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$equivalence” of pictures be locally determined, i.e. decided on the basis of restriction to small patches on $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$. To make the connection with lattice models, we consider $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$ discretized as a cell complex; the conditions must span only clumps of cells of constant combinatorial diameter. As in the example of harmonic $`1`$cycles, $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$equivalence” is a slight misnomer: what we impose instead are invariance condition on the (linear combinations of) admissible pictures representing any fixed $`vV`$ which ensure that the stabilized vectors are in fact equally weighted superpositions of all admissible pictures representing $`v`$.

Now consider the question, perhaps the first question a geometric topologist should ask about a modular functor $`V(\mathrm{\Sigma })`$; Can you draw a (local) picture of it on $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$ so that the mapping class group of $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$ acts on $`V(\mathrm{\Sigma })`$ by the obvious induced action on pictures?

We should not expect it to be easy to discover the local rules for the pictures associated to a given modular functor $`V`$ and in fact they may not exist in much generality. Recall that a three manifold $`Y`$ bounding $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$, $`Y=\mathrm{\Sigma }`$ determines a vector $`v(Y)V(\mathrm{\Sigma })`$ so we might think of our proposed picture $`P\left(v(Y)\right)`$ drawn on $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$ as some ghostly recollection of $`Y`$. The present understanding of modular functors is closely related to surgery formulas on links, but to think in this way we must choose a $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$base point” $`3`$manifold $`Y_0`$ with $`Y_0=\mathrm{\Sigma }`$ to hold the links. This choice seems to create an asymmetry which should not be present in $`P\left(v(Y)\right)`$. Thus for a pictorial representation of $`V`$ which is derived from surgery, we expect only part of the mapping group $``$ that part extending over $`Y_0`$ will act locally. To localize V, this problem must be overcome.

Let us propose a meta theorem or $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$principle” that solving the $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$picture problem,” which we call $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$combinatorial localization,” should imply both the Freed-Walker program, which we call $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$algebraic localization” and the design problem for the Hamiltonian $`H`$ which we call $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$physical localization.”

Figure 1

The solid arrow is asserted with some confidence at least as a mathematical statement; the dotted arrow is speculative. While the solid arrow seems unlikely to have a literal converse: ground states of even simple Hamiltonians in dimension $`2`$ are too complicated to draw pictures of; conceivably the dotted arrow might be an equivalence constituting a culmination of the Freed-Walker program.

## 2 Combinatorial localization of CS5 on marked disks, and the proof of the theorem.

We show how to represent CS5 (and by extension all CSr) on a disk with marked points by local pictures. Since the representation of quantum computing within CS5 \[FLW\] only used the braid group acting on a disk with marked points, this partial solution to the combinatorial localization problem will suffice to prove the theorem (once we have explained the solid arrow in figure 1).

For any $`r2`$, CS$`r`$ has a combinatorial localization on any cellulated disk with marked labeled points, (labels $`ϵ\{0,1,\mathrm{},r2\}`$ lie on the marked points and disk boundary) provided the cellulation has bounded combinatorics and the marked points stay sufficiently far from each other and the boundary. For a concrete statement, let us take the cellulated disk to be a rectangle $`R`$ with a square Euclidean cellulation. We suppose that all marked points are at least $`r`$ lattice spacings from the boundary and $`9r`$ from each other. The marked points and $`R`$ are all assigned the label $`1`$ (the irreducible $`2`$ dimensional representation of $`sl(2,)_q`$). In this circumstances it is easy to build a trivalent $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}r`$collared rooted tree” $`T_r`$ for the disk with marked points as shown in figure 2.

Figure 2

All straight segments of the tree are to be more than $`3r`$ lattice bonds in length; the root is on $`R`$ and the leaves are the marked points. The $`r`$collard condition is that an $`\frac{r}{2}`$ relative regular neighborhood $`N(T)`$ of lattice cells - the region within the dashed line - should be imbedded in $`R`$.

The box counts in the statement of the theorem are designed to permit a (discontinuous) family of $`T_r`$’s to be found for at all times during braiding. We say that the boxing of $`R`$ is roomy relative to the location of the marked points if it has this property. The key Lemma 2.1 will show that for roomy boxing that two discrete pictures, which we regard as smoothly equivalent are in fact combinatorially equivalent. More precisely, the infinity of smooth averaging operators acting on the space of combinatorial pictures has exactly the same joint fixed set as a finite subset of combinatorial operators.

Let us begin with a geometric interpretation of CS5$`(\mathrm{\Sigma })=:V(\mathrm{\Sigma })`$. For a closed surfaces $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$ it is implicit in \[K,L\]. Let $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$ bound a handle body $`H`$. A general $`3`$manifold $`Y`$ with boundary $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$ can now be represented as a $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$blackboard framed” surgery diagram in $`H`$. The special cabling morphism $`w`$ of the Temperley-Lieb category (See chapter 12 \[K,L\] or \[R,T\]) when composed into the surgery diagram yields a linear combinations of $`1`$ manifolds, each labeled by $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}1`$”. We may write $`H`$ as a planar surface cross interval, $`H\mathrm{\Sigma }\mathrm{\_}\times I`$, so that $`\mathrm{\Sigma }=\mathrm{\Sigma }\mathrm{\_}_{}\mathrm{\Sigma }\mathrm{\_}`$, where $`\mathrm{\Sigma }\mathrm{\_}`$ denotes $`\mathrm{\Sigma }\mathrm{\_}`$ with its orientation reversed. Now projecting these $`1`$manifolds to $`\mathrm{\Sigma }\mathrm{\_}`$, we see a linear combination of immersed $`1`$labeled $`1`$manifolds with overcrossings indicated at double points. This pictures determines the vector $`v(Y)`$. The Kauffman relations at a root of unity, in our case $`e^{2\pi i/5}`$, allow extensive simplification of these pictures via the recoupling formalism. In fact each $`vV`$ can be encoded as a labeling of a fixed (framed, imbedded, and vertex planar) trivalent graph, which is a spine for a $`\mathrm{\Sigma }\mathrm{\_}`$.

It is an important observation of Walker’s (personal communication) and Gelca’s \[G\] that this description can be extended to labeled surfaces with boundary. (Verification follows directly from the gluing axiom.) In the case of a disk with $`n`$ marked points $`(D,n)`$ \- treating marked points as crushed boundary components - the modular functor with $`n+1`$ labels $`\stackrel{}{\mathrm{}}\text{,}V_{\stackrel{}{\mathrm{}}}(D,n)`$ has as its basis $`q`$admissible labelings with boundary condition on a fixed trivalent tree imbedded in $`D`$, rooted on $`D`$, with leaves on the marked points. The boundary condition is that the label on the root is the label given on $`D^2`$ and each leaf has the label associated to its marked point. As in \[FLW\], we only need consider the case where all labels $`=1`$.

The (framed) braid group acts on the labeled tree $`T`$ via its imbedding in the disk. To see the induced action on $`V(D,n)`$ (we drop labeling subscripts), perturb the imbedding of $`T`$(rel its endpoints) by pushing it downward into a three ball $`D\times [0,1]`$, where we think of $`D`$ identified with $`D\times 0`$. Now implement any desired braid $`b`$ as a diffeormorphism of $`D\times [0,ϵ]`$ where $`ϵ>0`$ is small with respect to the previous push. Viewed from above, $`b(T)`$ has overcrossings but the recoupling $`(6j)`$ rules (and isotopies) allow $`b(T)`$ to be described in the original basis of $`q`$admissible labelings on $`T`$ (with root and leaves still carrying the label 1). For example the simplest Kauffman relations, on strands of $`b(T)`$ labeled by $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}1`$” read:

$$\text{}=e^{\pi i/10})(e^{\pi i/10}\text{}\text{ and }=e^{\pi i/5}+e^{\pi i/5}=:d.$$

A detailed example: the effect of a single braid generator, is given immediately following the statement of Lemma 2.1 to elucidate the recoupling of braids.

There is a topological observation inherent in inducing the braid action on $`V(D,n)`$. By capping off, any diffeomorphism of a planar surface extends to the two sphere and can be extended further to a diffeomorphism of the $`3`$ball $`B^3`$. The action on $`V`$ comes from projecting this topological extension acting on labeled trivalent trees back into the original planar surface (after crushing the inner boundary components to points). In fact, it is the correspondence between $`3`$manifolds and diagrams which proves that we have correctly specified the action on the functor, for we have $`v(\overline{f}Y)=f_{}v(Y)`$ where $`\overline{f}|_{Y=\mathrm{\Sigma }}=f`$. Generally, when a surfaces $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$ has genus $`>0`$ there will be no way of including it in the boundary of a $`3`$manifold $`M`$ so that all diffeomorphisms of $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$ extend over $`Y`$. However it is a triviality that any diffeomorphism of $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$ extends over $`\mathrm{\Sigma }\times I`$ by product with id<sub>I</sub>. Now let this extension act on the appropriate equivalence classes of framed $`q`$admissibly labeled trivalent graphs imbedded in $`\mathrm{\Sigma }\times I`$ projected back into $`\mathrm{\Sigma }`$ to define the action on any $`SU(N)`$level $`=r`$ modular functor $`V`$. Thus the $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$doubled” functor $`V(\mathrm{\Sigma })V^{}(\mathrm{\Sigma })=V(\mathrm{\Sigma }\overline{\mathrm{\Sigma }})=V\left((\mathrm{\Sigma }\times I)\right)`$ has a combinatorial localization, i.e. is describable by local pictures. This may have some relation to unpublished work of Kitaev and Kupperberg (private communication) on local descriptions for Drinfeld doubles.

We set aside for later study the problem of devising combinatorial local rules for the necessary elementary equivalences of such trees $`T`$: $`6j`$moves, ribbon equivalence, vertex half-twist equivalence, and regular homotopy.

One would hope to define a quantum medium for CS5 of individual systems with levels to record labels $`0,1,2,3`$ (and possible additional levels to store other information) and terms $`H_k`$ with at most $`6`$ indices (as in a $`6j`$symbol) corresponding to these elementary equivalences. While this count seems correct in the smooth setting, there the crude Hilbert space is infinite dimensional which may create new difficulties. We have not been able to find a discrete setting in which all the equivalences are expressed efficiently. For the purpose of this lecture, we stay with discrete models for quantum media built from $`2`$level systems, but to do this we accept terms $`H_k`$ with up to $`30`$ indices.

The fundamental $`2`$dimensional representation of $`SU(2)`$ generates $`SU(2)`$’s complex representation ring and as a result recoupling theory achieves a very simple result: an element $`vV(D,n)`$ is a linear combination of imbedded $`1`$manifolds each labeled by $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}1`$”, i.e. the standard $`2`$dimensional representation and given the boundary condition: each $`1`$manifold of the linear combination meets each marked point (and $`D`$) once. Thus $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$manifoldness” and the $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$boundary condition” define admissibility for our picture. this makes good sense combinatorically in the lattice of $`R`$, as well as, smoothly. We point out that our notion of $`1`$manifold is strict: at each vertex $`0`$ or $`2`$ edges (not $`4`$) should be occupied.

It is time to define the local equivalence moves between pictures. We are working within the Temperley-Lieb category modulo the relation that the $`(r1)^{\text{th}}=4^{\text{th}}`$ Jones-Wenzl projector is trivial. This is our most interesting relation. As a smooth equivalence relation this has only one form but combinatorially, we need to impose two versions of it according to how the output endpoints are grouped. We denote these by and . The second picture stands for : in conventional projector notation (\[K,L\]).

A second relation says that removing a circle which bounds a disk free from punctures multiples the diagram by the scalar $`\frac{1}{d}`$, $`d=e^{\pi i/5}+e^{\pi i/5}`$. A third relation replaces the undercrossing that arise through braiding with legitimate morphisms if the category. In terms of smooth pictures, the relation replaces the $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$virtual” uncrossing in the middle diagram with a two term sum:

Figure 3

The middle picture is $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$ virtual”; it is not actually an admissible picture to be assigned a weight. This relation requires a little care and lattice space to discretize since we do not want to permit the intermediate picture:

Figure 4

which would represent the wrong boundary data at the indicated defect. Recall that each defect is labeled by $`1`$ representing the $`2`$dimensional irreducible representation of $`sl(2,)_q`$ which is recorded by a single line leaving the defect.

Finally, a fourth class of equivalence permits isotopy. Again the reader should note that enough neighboring sites should be observed by the appropriate $`H_k`$ to preserve imbeddedness. For example, cases 1 and 2 are allowable, case 3 is not.

Figure 5

There will be isotopy relations for arc endpoints as well. For example, in cases $`1`$ and $`2`$ of Figure 3 imagine the open circle filled to become an end point and the shorter of the two line segments meeting it deleted. Morally, we should define operators $`\overline{H}_k`$ which enforce the average of the initial $`I`$ and final $`F`$ configuration of cases $`1`$ and $`2`$. However there is a detail, to get the overall phase correct, and not settle for merely a projective representation, we must fix a base point direction: say the positive ray emanating from each endpoint at $`45`$ degrees and find positive semidefinite $`\overline{H}_k`$’s which assign zero norm to $`\frac{1}{\sqrt{2}}(I_1e^{\pi i/10}F_1)`$ and $`\frac{1}{\sqrt{2}}[I_2F_2]`$ in cases $`1`$ and $`2`$ respectively. These operators correspond to asserting equivalences: $`I_1e^{\pi i/10}F_1`$ and $`I_2F_2`$. The general rule is that a state obtained by clockwise (counterclockwise) isotopy through the base point direction must be adjusted by the phase $`+()e^{i\pi /2r}`$ before being averaged. Similarly there is an isotopy relation for the arc end point on the boundary circle of the disk $`D`$. Here some point on the boundary is chosen an phase is adjusted by $`(+)e^{i\pi /2r}`$ as this point is crossed clockwise (counterclockwise).

Let us return to the raltions $`=0=`$ . Combinatorically the first may be written out with the left hand side a $`3\times 3`$ lattice square foliated by parallel straight lines (of label $`=1`$). Wenzl’s \[We\], recursion formula, yields an identity equating $`4`$ parallel lines with a linear combination of $`13`$ $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$smaller” terms each containing $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$turn arounds.” The form of the relation is shown below:

Figure 6.0

In its other incarnation, the 4th Jones-Wenzl’s projector relation $`=0`$ looks like this:

Figure 6.1

The coefficients $`a_i`$ are rational functors of $`d`$ which can be computed from the Wenzl’s recursion relation for projectors (see pg. 18 \[K, L\] or \[We\]). Figure 6.0 is merely the lattice counterpart of the more familiar smooth relation, Figure 6.0, which may be applied within any diagram (at $`r=5`$) whenever four $`1`$ labeled lines are found running parallel. Obviously Figure 6.1 also has a smooth counterpart.

Figure 6.0

The admissibility conditions and the above four classes of $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$equivalences” must be rewritten as operators $`A_i`$ and $`B_j`$ respectively; collectively denoted $`\overline{H}_k`$. Let $`G`$ denote the ground state of the soon-to-be-defined Hamiltonian $`H=\underset{𝑘}{\mathrm{\Sigma }}\overline{H}_k`$. Let $`V`$ denote the CSr modular functor of the disk with $`3n`$ marked points and all labels $`=1`$. Via recoupling, we may describe $`V`$ in the fashion of homology. Set $`P=`$ \[admissible pictures\] and write: $`V=V_s=P/_s`$, where $`_s`$ is the smooth-category equivalence relation corresponding to our four combinatorical equivalences: $`_c`$. Lemma 2.1 will prove that under the $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$roomy hypothesis” $`_s`$ and $`_c`$ induce identical equivalence classes of admissible pictures (which of course are combinatorial objects). So we may also write $`V=V_c=P/_c`$. Our goal is to tailor $`H`$ so that the ground states $`gG`$ correspond bijectively to linear functionals $`\varphi :V`$ under the map $`\varphi \underset{\underset{\text{admissible pictures}}{p}}{\mathrm{\Sigma }}\varphi (p)(p)`$. This will identify $`G`$ with $`V^{}`$, but since $`V`$ has a canonical nonsingular Hermitian inner product $`(`$\[Wi\] and \[K,L\]$`)`$ this also gives an isomorphism $`GV`$.

The inner product $`<p_1,p_2>`$ is defined on pictures by imbedding the disk $`D`$ into the $`(x,y)`$plane, deforming $`p_1`$ upward rel endpoints and $`p_2`$ downward rel endpoints. The union of the deformed pictures $`\stackrel{~}{p}_1\stackrel{~}{p}_2`$ is a (vertically framed) link in $`R^3`$ and it Kauffman bracket is $`<p_1,p_2>`$. Note that the vertical framing is singular where $`p_1`$ and $`p_2`$ share a common lattice bonds meeting $`p_1`$ and $`p_2`$; here the convention is to bend such bonds of $`p_2`$ slightly clockwise at the endpoints internal to $`D`$ and counterclockwise at an endpoint on $`D`$.

The definition of the $`A_i`$ operators is quite obvious. Consider, a vertex $`v`$ in the interior of $`R`$. A Hermitian $`A_v`$ with $`4`$ indices whose ground state is spanned by classical states of valence $`0`$ or $`2`$ at $`v`$ is said to enforce $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}1`$manifoldness” at $`v`$. Clearly the ground state of $`A_v`$ has dimension $`7`$. To enforce, instead, a $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$defect” or marked point labeled by the fundamental representation, $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$1” of $`SU(2)`$, we would use instead a Hermitian operator $`A_v^{}`$ with ground state spanned by the four classical states of valence $`=1`$ at $`v`$.

Turning now to $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$relations” $`B_j`$ consider a box $`b`$ of $`R`$ centered in a $`3\times 3`$ square of boxes:

Figure 7

there are $`12`$ nonboundary edges $`\{e\}`$ (shown in bold). If $`\{c\text{’s}\}`$ are the nonempty (classical) manifold configuration of these edges, i.e. valence $`\{0,2\}`$ at each of the four internal vertices, and iff $`c_0`$ and $`c_1=c_0\text{xor}b\{c\text{’s}\}`$, set $`d=\frac{1}{\sqrt{2}}\left(c_0c_1\right)`$ and let $`\{d\}`$ be the set of such vectors. Let $`B_b=\underset{dϵ\{d\}}{\mathrm{\Sigma }}|d><d|`$ be the Hermitian operator with $`12`$ indices on $`(^2)^{\{e\}}`$ whose ground state is orthogonal to span $`\{d\}`$. $`B_b`$ is the operator which $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$allows isotopy across $`b`$.”

To remove circles which bound disks we need, in the presence of isotopy, only introduce operators which deletes a box. This operator may be written as $`|\theta ><\theta |`$ where $`\theta `$ is a unit vector proportional to $`|\text{box}>+\left(e^{\pi i/5}+e^{\pi i/5}\right)|\varphi >`$.

We postpone the definition of the operator corresponding to figures 3 and 4 since this must involve the dynamics $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}t`$” of $`H_t`$. Some trick is needed to avoided adding new levels to our system to encode $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$crossings.”

The projector corresponding to , Figure 6.0, requires a $`24`$index operator acting on a $`3\times 3`$ grid of edges or $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$box” $`B`$ whose $`1`$ dimensional excited state is spanned by the vector obtained by putting all fourteen term in Figure 6.0 on the left hand side of the equation. Similarly the projector corresponding to , Figure 6.1 is a 30 index operator acting on the bonds of a region the shape of l.h.s. in Figure 6.1. This $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$nobby box” $`B^{}`$ is a $`2\times 5`$ rectangle union an additional small box in the middle of one of the long sides.

Now we turn to the dynamics. Almost all conditions $`H_k`$ that combine to yield $`H`$ are permanent, only the end point operators $`A_v^{}`$ should change as we execute braiding. Because of the technical problem illustrated in figure 4; any lattice resolution into a superposition of two $`1`$manifolds as in figure 3 may cause collision with other strands. One way to deal with this problem is to locate the marked points on a second lattice $`𝐋^{}`$ consisting of the mid points of the edges in the original Lattice $`𝐋`$ of boxes in $`R`$. This means that we have to add additional $`2`$index $`A`$ operators holding equal the two classical states on both halves of the original edges, i.e. ground state $`(A)=(00>,|11>)`$, and that the end point operators $`A_w^{}`$ actually occur (with $`2`$dimensional ground states) on the finer lattice $`𝐋^{}`$, $`wϵ𝐋^{}`$. The dynamics consists of moving an endpoint diagonally on $`𝐋^{}`$, i.e. translating one unit horizontally or vertically in the structure of $`𝐋`$. In Figure 8 the endpoint $`w`$ is moved horizontally to $`w^{}`$ by replacing: $`\{A_w^{},A_w^{}\}`$ with $`\{A_w,A_w^{}^{}\}`$. If $`w`$ and $`w^{}`$ are immediately adjacent in $`𝐋`$ the operator swap will cause the end point to travel around a corner.

Figure 8

This operator swap can be performed gradually by slowly turning the appropriate terms on or off. If the adiabatic theory is applicable, and following the proof of Lemma 2.1 we discuss the heuristics for an energy gap (in the theromdynamic limit) for the family $`H_t`$, $`\psi _t`$ will be carried to a unique ground state $`\psi _t`$ of $`H_{t+1}`$. This ground as a functional on pictures is identical to $`\psi _t`$ provided pictures are identified according to the obvious isotopy rules (and phase rules at endpoints). If the lattice is refined by a linear factor $`L`$, tunneling to an undesired orthogonal ground state $`\psi _{t+1}^{}`$ should, by arguments analogous to those for the stability of homology classes \[K2\], have amplitudes scaling like $`ϵ(L)=e^{\mathrm{\Omega }(L)}`$. The mathematical description for adiabatic evolution of the system is via the natural connection $`A`$ on the tautological bundle over the complex Grassmannian $`X`$: The time evolution of $`G:=\{`$ground states $`(H_t)\}`$ defines a path in $`X`$ and $`A`$transport covers this motion with a unitary (i.e.isometric) identification $`G_0G_t`$, for all $`t0`$. After a braiding $`b`$ is completed at time $`t=T`$, the self-identification $`G_0G_T`$ is the representation of the braid b.

A ground state $`gGP`$ defines a functional $`g^{}`$ on $`P`$ via orthogonal projection. The $`\{B_j\}`$ have been chosen to correspond to $`_c`$ precisely so that a unique extension $`\varphi `$ exists:

and $`\varphi `$ satisfies $`g=\mathrm{\Sigma }\varphi (p)(p)`$. Conversely given a functional $`\varphi `$ on $`V_c`$ the $`g`$ associated to $`\varphi `$ by the formula above lies in the null space of each $`B_j`$, so in fact $`G=V_c^{}`$.

The important remaining point is to see that after braiding, when the marked points have been returned to there original sites set-wise, that the induced transformation on the ground state is precisely, up to error $`ϵ(L)`$, the unitary CS5 representation originally introduced by Jones \[J\] and studied in \[FLW\]. But this follows from the recoupling theory as presented in \[K,L\] provided we show that the combinatorial relations that we have imposed through Hermitian operators $`\{B_j\}`$ in fact are sufficient to span all the relations implied by the infinitely many smooth relations between pictures, that is $`V_s=V_c`$. For this the following lemma suffices.

###### Lemma 2.1.

Let $`\rho =\underset{𝑖}{\mathrm{\Sigma }}a_ip_i`$ be a linear relation between admissible combinatorial pictures in $`(R,\{3n\})`$ which holds under $`_s`$, the smooth recoupling theory associated to CS$`r`$. Provided that the configuration $`\{3n\}R`$ is roomy in the rectangle $`R`$, the same relation already holds under $`_c`$.

Before proving the lemma let us carry out a simple calculation to get a feel for how the action of braiding is computed via recoupling theory. If the reader wishes to try more complicated examples, the formulas on pages 93-100 of \[K,L\] are helpful. Here we compute the effect of a braid generator on a vector $`\psi _{}V:=`$CS5 ($`3`$punctured disk) where each boundary component has label$`=1`$ ( the $`2`$dimensional representation of $`sl(2,)_q)`$ and to account for phase each boundary has a marked base point.

$$\psi _{}^{}\text{ is the diagram: }\text{},$$

which as a labeled tree is:

$$\psi _{}^{}=\text{}$$

Let $`b`$ be the counterclockwise braided of the right most pair of punctures. Then $`b\psi _{}^{}`$ is represented by:

$$\text{}=\underset{\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}\text{virtual picture”}}{\text{}}=$$

$$()A\text{}+A^1\text{},\text{ where }A=e^{2\pi i/10}.$$

Now $`\stackrel{2}{\text{}}`$ is our notation for the Jones-Wenzl idempotentent $`\stackrel{2}{\text{}}=\frac{1}{\sqrt{d^21}}\left(\text{}\frac{1}{d}\right)`$ where $`d=A^2A^2`$ and, as usual, the open ends in the above diagrams can be interpreted as permitting arbitrary (but constant) extension to the outside. Note: the orthogonality relations

* $`<\frac{1}{d},\frac{1}{d}>=\frac{1}{d^2}`$ $`=1`$
* $`<\frac{1}{\sqrt{d^21}}\left(\text{}\frac{1}{d}\right),\frac{1}{\sqrt{d^21}}\left(\text{}\frac{1}{d}\right)>=\frac{1}{d^21}\left(\text{}\frac{2}{d}\text{}+\frac{1}{d^2}\text{}\right)=\frac{1}{d^21}\left(d^2\frac{2}{d}d+\frac{1}{d^2}d^2\right)=1`$, and
* $`<\frac{1}{\sqrt{d^21}}(\text{}\frac{1}{d}),\frac{1}{d}>=\frac{1}{d\sqrt{d^21}}(\text{}\frac{1}{d}\text{})=\frac{1}{d\sqrt{d^21}}(d\frac{1}{d}d^2)=0`$

Normalizing, $`\psi _{}=\frac{1}{d}\psi _t^{}`$ is a unit vector, $`<\psi _{},\psi _{}>=1`$.

From the definition of $`\stackrel{2}{\text{}}`$ we have: $`=\sqrt{d^21}`$ $`\stackrel{2}{\text{}}\frac{1}{d}`$. So we use this to expand the two parallel lines in the second term of $`()`$ to get:

$`b\psi _{}=`$ $`A\psi _{}+{\displaystyle \frac{A^1}{d}}\left(\text{}\right)`$
$`=`$ $`A\psi _{}+{\displaystyle \frac{A^1}{d}}(\sqrt{d^21}\text{}+{\displaystyle \frac{1}{d}}\text{})()`$
$`=`$ $`A\psi _{}+{\displaystyle \frac{\sqrt{d^21}}{d}}A^1\psi _2+{\displaystyle \frac{A^1}{d}}\psi _{}`$
$`\text{where }\psi _2:=`$ $`\text{},`$
$`=`$ $`\left(A+{\displaystyle \frac{A^1}{d}}\right)\psi _{}+{\displaystyle \frac{\sqrt{d^21}}{d}}A^1\psi _2`$
As a check on unitarity note that under the sequelinear pairing,

$`<b\psi _{},b\psi _{}>=`$ $`\left(A+{\displaystyle \frac{A^1}{d}}\right)\left(A^1+{\displaystyle \frac{A}{d}}\right)+\left({\displaystyle \frac{\sqrt{d^21}}{d}}A^1{\displaystyle \frac{\sqrt{d^21}}{d}}A\right)`$
$`=`$ $`1+{\displaystyle \frac{A^2+A^2}{d}}+{\displaystyle \frac{1}{d^2}}+{\displaystyle \frac{d^21}{d^2}}=1`$
Proof of Lemma 2.1. The argument is based on the Birkhoff curve shortening principle where by a family of imbedded arcs and circles can be $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$pulled tight” to a shorter geodesic position without crossings developing. We work combinatorically. By the $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$roomy hypothesis” there is an $`r`$collared tree $`T:=T_rR`$. Assign a positive weight $`w(\beta )`$ to each bond $`\beta `$ (or $`1`$cell) of the cellutation of $`R`$ so that $`w`$ grows rapidly with distance to $`T`$: as a good first approximation, we may take $`w(\beta )=10^{\mathrm{\#}(\beta )}`$ where $`\mathrm{\#}(\beta )=`$minimum number of bonds joining $`\beta `$ to $`T`$. Now for any (classical) picture $`p_i`$ define its length $`L(p_i)=\underset{\beta ϵp_i}{\mathrm{\Sigma }}w(\beta )`$. Permitting combinatorial isotopy (rel the marked points) and the removal of small circles, but not the undercrossing, , or relations, we may pull $`p_i`$ tight by local moves to equivalent pictures (up to a scalar) which steadily reduce $`L(p_i)`$ until a local minimum is reached. Call this step $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$pull tight”. Because of our weight function $`w`$, the new $`p_i`$ will try to lie mainly in a small neighborhood of $`T`$, and only occupancy of the bonds close to $`T`$ will force parts of the picture to lie farther away. Also the picture, seeking to occupy the bonds near $`T`$ efficiently will have its strands running parallel to $`T`$ in $`(r2)\times (r2)`$ lattice blocks $`\beta `$ a thwart the middle $`r`$bonds of each of the distinguished length $`3r`$ segments of $`T`$. Also at the trivalent vertices of $`T`$ near which sufficiently many strands pass, we would like to see copies of l.h.s. Figure 6.1. This will be true up to a small isotopy (across a few boxes) and can be made true on the nose by modifying the weight function $`w`$ by adding a small term proportional to the distance from each trivalent vertex out to a distance $`r`$ from that vertex. Now apply at some site in a $`B`$ or at some site $`B^{}`$ if the opportunity presents. This breaks $`p_i`$ into $`\underset{𝑗}{\mathrm{\Sigma }}b_{ij}q_{ij}`$ and for all $`j`$, $`L(q_{ij})<L(p_i)`$. Pull tight again to remove the slack created by the $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$turn arounds” in Figure 6.0 or 6.1. Alternate pulling tight with applications of or until no further reductions in length can be made in this way. Call this cycle $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$pull and cut”. With a slight abuse of notation let $`q_{ij}`$ denote one of the terminal classical states of this process. Now allow a single $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$under crossing” move (Figure 3) to further reduce $`L(q_{ij})`$ if such a move is available. Now alternated the $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$pull and cut” cycle with single under crossing moves until no daughter picture (still denote $`q_{ij}`$) can have its length reduced by further iteration of this process.

Manifestly, all the daughter pictures $`q_{ij}`$ now lie in $`N(T)`$ and pass through all boxes $`B`$ parallel to $`T`$ and with $`3`$ or few strands and pass through each $`B^{}`$ in a standard way according to some admissible triple as explained below. Note that $`(3,3,2)`$ is not admissible. At this point it is simple to formally reorganize the term of this sum $`\underset{ij}{\mathrm{\Sigma }}b_{ij},q_{ij}`$ as $`\mathrm{\Sigma }c_{\mathrm{}}T_{\mathrm{}}`$ where $`T_{\mathrm{}}`$ is an admissible labeling of $`T`$. As explained in \[K,L\], the leaves and root $`T`$ of $`t`$ are always labeled by $`1`$ (this is our choice) and the admissibility condition says that other edges (i.e. components of the intrinsic $`1`$skeleton of $`T`$) are labeled by $`a,b,c,d,\mathrm{}`$ taken from $`\{0,1,2,\mathrm{},r2\}`$ so that at each trivalent vertex of $`T`$ the following relations hold on the triple of incident labels $`a,b,`$ and $`c`$:

$`a`$ $`b+c`$
$`b`$ $`c+a`$
$`c`$ $`a+b`$
$`a+b+c`$ $`0\text{(mod 2), and}`$
$`a+b+c`$ $`<2(r1)=8.`$
An admissible labeling $`T_{\mathrm{}}`$ is interpreted as a linear combination of pictures by replacing each edge with the Jones-Wenzl projector corresponding to its label. The set of admissible labeled trees $`\{T_{\mathrm{}}\}`$ is an orthogonal basis for the modular functor $`V_s(R,\{3n\})`$, defined topologically using the smooth equivalence relation. (The subscript $`s`$ is to emphasis that the smooth relations are used in this definition; of course $`V_s=V`$.)

Because of the assumed $`p=\underset{i,j}{\mathrm{\Sigma }}b_{ij},q_{ij}=0V_s(R,\{3n\})`$, $`c_{\mathrm{}}=0`$ for all admissible $`\mathrm{}`$. But each $`q_{ij}`$ is an imbedded arc pairing $`x`$ of the $`\{`$leaves $``$ root$`\}`$ in $`N(T)`$ satisfying the additional admissibility restriction at each trivalent vertex of $`T`$. Such pairings are an alternative (though not orthogonal) basis for the modular functor $`V(R,\{3n\})`$ so collected in this basis we have for each pairing type $`x`$, we have $`\mathrm{\Sigma }b_{ij}^x,q_{ij}^x=0`$ where

$`b_{ij}^x=b_{ij}`$ $`\text{if }q_{ij}\text{ has type }=x`$
$`=0`$ $`\text{if }q_{ij}\text{ has type }x.`$
But all $`q_{ij}`$ of a fixed type are clearly combinatorally equivalent $`(_c)`$. Thus we have found a combinatorial path through applications of $`(_c)`$ from $`p`$ to the empty picture, or more precisely to a sum of zero times various pictures. $`\mathrm{}`$

Unlike \[K2\] the individual summands of $`H`$ do not commute. The ground states of $`H`$ has been computed topologically, however the spectrum spec$`(H)`$ is less accessible. The most important question is the existence of an energy gap above the ground state which is constant under lattice refinement, $`L\mathrm{}`$, i.e. in the thermodynamic limit. The following heuristics motivate the conjectured energy gap.

In finite classical systems such as random walk on a graph diffusion time is well known to scale inversely with the spectral gap of the Laplacian. Similarly, in some simple quantum mechanical systems where exact calculation is possible, the energy gap scales inversely to the diffusion time between classical states. In \[K2\] where direct calculation yields an energy gap above the ground state, the classical states are cycles and the $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$diffusion” is through elementary bordisms. Since we have set up our ground state to be analogous to homology: $`GP/_c`$ with pictures playing the role of cycles and our $`\{B_j\}`$ playing the role of bordisms we expect similar diffusion properties and hence an energy gap. In lemma 2.1 the proof shows that equivalent pictures $`p_1`$ and $`p_2`$ are connected by a $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$path” $`\gamma `$ of deformations ($`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$down” from $`p_1`$ to a neighborhood of $`T_r`$ and then back up to $`p_2`$). Rapid diffusion corresponds to observing that there are a plethora of such paths and in fact the procedure for finding $`\gamma `$ is highly under determined. More difficult would be a rigorous implication between diffusion and spec$`(H)`$. Extending the analogy with \[K2\], in both cases when the lattice is refined by a factor of $`L`$, a sequence of $`O(L)`$ local operators is required to transform between a pair of orthogonal ground states. So given the existence of an energy gap, the Hamiltonian $`H`$ will be stable to order $`O(L)`$ in perturbation theory; formally corresponds to tunneling amplitudes between orthogonal ground states which scale like $`e^{\mathrm{\Omega }(L)}`$.

There are several important open questions. The first is a rigorous treatment of the energy gap, but this is probably too difficult in the present model. Another is how to deal with errors in the form of actual rather than $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$virtual” excitation which have already been discussed in the context of tunneling. Can a coupling to a could bath repair such errors or are more active measures required? For example, can broken endpoint pairs of a $`1`$manifold find each other and cancel through some imposed attraction (as suggested by Dan Gottesman in conversations) or merely through random walk? Nearby error pairs may be more serious in CS5 than in the toric codes since isotopy class not just homology needs to be preserved; the wrong reconnection pairing would result in an unrecoverable error. To make this unlikely, should additional terms be included into our Hamiltonian $`H`$ which could force distinct strands to be widely separated? This would put more weight on the simpler pictures, which are the ones that the quantum medium can most easily correct if damaged.

Kitaev’s very general notion of quantum media with its several antecedents in the study of quantum statistical mechanics looks likely to become a central object of study shared between theoretical physics, solid state physics, and topology. The main disappointment of the present investigation is the complexity of the local Hamiltonian $`H`$ used to construct stable universal topological quantum computation. One sees no easy road to radically simplifying it and still obtaining an exact description of CS5. However another path may be open. In our discussions, Kitaev has suggested (also see page 46 \[P\]) that simpler lattice Hamiltonians may renormalize in the scaling limit to topological modular functors. Perhaps the most interesting topological theories, such as CS5, because of their simplicity will have large $`\mathrm{`}\mathrm{`}`$basins of attraction” under renormalization and that identifiable universality classes of quantum media may not only exist mathematically but may even lie within the reach of engineers.


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# Very long storage times and evaporative cooling of cesium atoms in a quasi-electrostatic dipole trap

## Abstract

We have trapped cesium atoms over many minutes in the focus of a CO2-laser beam employing an extremely simple laser system. Collisional properties of the unpolarized atoms in their electronic ground state are investigated. Inelastic binary collisions changing the hyperfine state lead to trap loss which is quantitatively analyzed. Elastic collisions result in evaporative cooling of the trapped gas from 25 $`\mu `$K to 10 $`\mu `$K over a time scale of about 150 s.

The focus of a CO2-laser beam constitutes an almost perfect realization of a conservative trapping potential for neutral atoms . Atoms are confined in all three spatial dimensions by the optical dipole force pointing towards the maximum of the intensity . The CO2-laser wavelength of $`10.6\mu `$m is far below any optical transitions from the ground state which has important consequences. As one consequence, the optical potential becomes quasi-electrostatic, i.e. the static polarizability of the particle determines the depth of the trap (quasi-electrostatic trap, QUEST). Therefore, different atomic species  and even molecules  can be confined in the same trap. All substates of the electronic ground state experience the same trapping potential in contrast to magnetic traps. Atoms can thus be trapped in their absolute energetic ground state which excludes loss through inelastic binary collisions. Another consequence of the large laser detuning from resonance is the negligibly small photon scattering rate so that heating by the photon momentum recoil does not occur.

In this Rapid Communication we show that storage times of many minutes can be achieved in a focused-beam dipole trap with a low-cost, easy-to-use CO2 laser usually employed for cutting and engraving of materials. The laser posseses neither frequency stabilization nor longitudinal mode selection. Despite the simplicity of the laser system, laser-noise induced heating rates, as first identified by Savard et al. , are found to be below 100 nK/s. Comparable storage times in a QUEST have recently been realized by O’Hara et al., who utilized an ultrastable, custom-made CO2 laser . The simplicity of our trap setup in combination with the long storage times are ideal prerequisites for experiments on interesting collisional properties of the trapped gas. As one application of the trap, we have studied hyperfine-changing collisions of unpolarized cesium atoms. As another important application, evaporative cooling of the trapped gas is demonstrated, which has so far only once been observed in an optical dipole trap .

The trapping potential of a CO2-laser beam with a spatial intensity distribution $`I(𝐫)`$ is given by $`U(𝐫)=\alpha _{\mathrm{stat}}I(𝐫)/2\epsilon _0c`$ where $`\alpha _{\mathrm{stat}}`$ denotes the static polarizability of the atoms . For a focused beam of power $`P`$ and waist $`w`$ one gets a trap potential with a depth $`U_0=\alpha _{\mathrm{stat}}I_0/\epsilon _0c`$ with $`I_0=2P/\pi w^2`$. The CO2 laser (Synrad 48-2WS) provides 25 W of power in a nearly TEM00 transversal mode characterized by $`M^2=1.2`$. The laser beam is first expanded to a waist of 11 mm by a telescope, and then focused into the vacuum chamber by a lens of 254 mm focal length. The focus has a waist of 110 $`\mu `$m and a Rayleigh range $`z_\mathrm{R}`$ of 2.4 mm, yielding a trap depth 120 $`\mu `$K (in units of the Boltzmann constant $`k_\mathrm{B}`$). Gravity lowers the potential height along the vertical direction to 92 $`\mu `$K. The axial and radial oscillation frequencies in the harmonic approximation are given by $`\omega _\mathrm{z}=(2U_0/mz_\mathrm{R}^2)^{1/2}`$ and $`\omega _\mathrm{r}=(4U_0/mw^2)^{1/2}`$ with $`m`$ denoting the cesium mass. For our experimental values one gets an axial oscillation frequency $`\omega _\mathrm{z}/2\pi =8.1`$ Hz and a radial frequency $`\omega _\mathrm{r}/2\pi =254`$ Hz.

Atoms are transferred into the dipole trap from a magneto-optical trap (MOT) containing about $`10^6`$ atoms. The MOT is loaded from an atomic beam which is Zeeman-slowed in the fringe fields of the MOT magnetic quadrupole field. The main vacuum chamber at a background pressure of about $`2\times 10^{11}`$ mbar is connected to the oven chamber by a tube which is divided into differentially-pumped sections to assure a sufficiently large pressure gradient. To optimize transfer from the MOT into the dipole trap, the atoms are further cooled and compressed by decreasing the detuning of the MOT trapping laser from initially $`2\mathrm{\Gamma }`$ (natural linewidth $`\mathrm{\Gamma }/2\pi =5.3`$ MHz) to $`20\mathrm{\Gamma }`$ with respect to the 62S1/2($`F=4`$) - 62P3/2($`F=5`$) transition of the cesium D2 line. After 40 ms of compression, the distribution of atoms in the MOT has a rms radius of 120 $`\mu `$m corresponding to an mean density of $`10^{10}`$ atoms/cm3. The temperature is 25 $`\mu `$K as measured by ballistic expansion of the cloud after release from the MOT. After the laser beams and the magnetic field of the MOT were turned off, the atoms are trapped in the focus of the CO2 laser beam which was present during the whole loading phase. Atoms are prepared in either the $`F=3`$ or the $`F=4`$ cesium hyperfine ground state by shuttering the MOT trapping laser 1 ms after or before the MOT repumping laser has been shuttered, respectively.

The number and spatial distribution of atoms trapped in the optical dipole trap are measured by taking an absorption image of the trapped atoms. A weak, resonant probe beam of 1 $`\mu `$W/cm2 intensity is pulsed for 100 $`\mu `$s and absorption of the atomic cloud is imaged onto a CCD camera. Fig. 1(a) shows a typical absorption image of atoms trapped in the QUEST. The image is taken 5 s after transfer from the MOT. The transmitted intensity $`I_t`$ of the probe laser through the atomic sample is described by $`I_t(x,y)=I_0\mathrm{exp}\left(A\eta (x,y)\right)`$ where $`I_0`$ denotes the laser intensity and $`A`$ the absorption cross section for the resonant transition. The column density $`\eta `$ is given by the integral of the density distribution $`n(x,y,z)`$ along the direction of the laser beam.

By fitting a thermal equilibrium distribution  to the data, we derive the mean density $`\overline{n}`$, the total number of trapped atoms $`N`$ and the temperature $`T`$. The maximum absorption of the trapped cloud is typically 17 % in the center of the distribution yielding a mean density of $`4\times 10^9`$ atoms/cm3 in the dipole trap. The atoms have axially expanded into an rms extension of 750 $`\mu `$m while the radial rms extension is 30 $`\mu `$m. The temperature is the same as in the MOT before transfer indicating that the atoms are cooled into the dipole trap by the MOT.

Typically $`10^5`$ atoms are transferred into the dipole trap. Assuming sufficient ergodicity, the number of atoms transferred from the MOT into the dipole trap can be determined from the phase-space integral $`f_{\mathrm{MOT}}(𝐱,𝐩)\theta (U_0ϵ)𝑑𝐱𝑑𝐩`$ which describes the projection of the phase-space distribution $`f_{\mathrm{MOT}}(𝐱,𝐩)`$ in the MOT onto the trapping region of the dipole trap. The Heavyside step function $`\theta (U_0ϵ)`$ equals 1 when the total energy $`ϵ=U(𝐫)+p^2/2m`$ of atoms in the dipole trap is smaller than the trap depth, and 0 elsewhere. Taking our experimental parameters, one expects $`2\times 10^5`$ atoms to be transferred into the dipole trap in reasonable agreement with the actual value.

To measure the radial oscillation frequency of atoms in the dipole trap, we take advantage of the fast switching capability of the CO2 laser. The laser can be turned off within about 200 $`\mu `$s by simply switching the RF power supply driving the gas discharge. By turning the laser off for a short time interval (around 1 ms), the trapped ensemble moves ballistically until the laser is turned on again (release-recapture). Part of the atoms will have escaped from the trap, while the recaptured atoms constitute a non-equilibrium distribution which oscillates at twice the oscillation frequency. When the first release-recapture cycle is followed by a second one, the number of finally recaptured atoms depends on the phase of the oscillation and thus on the delay time between the two cycles.

In Fig. 1(b), the number of recaptured atoms is plotted as a function of delay time between the two release-recapture cycles. One observes some cycles of coherent oscillation of the ensemble until the oscillation dephases mainly due to the anharmonicity of the potential. The oscillation period of 1.8 ms gives a radial oscillation frequency of 270 Hz in good agreement with the value expected for the trap parameters. The solid line in Fig. 1(b) shows the result of a Monte-Carlo simulation of the classical atom trajectories for the sequence of two release-recapture cycles with variable time delay between them.

The lifetime of atoms in the dipole trap is determined by recapturing the atoms back into the MOT after a variable storage time. For each loading and trapping cycle, three camera pictures are taken. The first picture gives the flourescence of atoms in the MOT shortly before transfer into the dipole trap. The second one shows the fluorescence distribution after recapture into the MOT. The last picture is taken after the atoms have been released from the recapture-MOT to provide the background which is then subtracted from the first two images. The number of atoms is determined from the integral over the fluorescence image. The particle number determined by this method is estimated to be accurate within a factor of two. By normalizing the number of recaptured atoms to the number of atoms initially in the MOT, fluctuations due to variations in the initial number of atoms can be cancelled out. Variations of the particle number in the MOT, however, are found to be below 10%, so that normalization was not used in the data presented here.

The decay of the number of stored atoms is shown in Fig. 2 for the two hyperfine ground states. Even after 10 min storage time, a few hundred atoms can be detected when prepared in the $`F=3`$ state. For atoms in the energetically higher $`F=4`$ hyperfine ground state, inelastic binary collisions between trapped atoms lead to additional trap loss . The energy of $`h\times 9.2`$ GHz released in the collisions is much larger than the trap depth, therefore both collision partners are ejected from the trap.

The decay curve for atoms in the $`F=4`$ state is fitted by the solution to the differential equation $`dN/dt=\gamma N\beta \overline{n}N`$ where $`\gamma `$ is the rate for trap loss through collisions with background gas and $`\beta `$ is the rate coefficient for inelastic binary collisions. The fit yields a decay constant $`\gamma ^1=165(25)`$ s. This value is consistent with the expected loss rates for collisions with background gas atoms at a pressure of $`10^{11}`$ mbar. No indication for laser-noise induced trap loss is found. From the fit one finds a decay coefficient $`\beta =2(1)\times 10^{11}`$ cm3/s with the error being mainly due to the uncertainty in the absloute particle number. A previous measurement of this quantity in an opto-electric trap  gave a similar result.

Atoms in the energetic ground state $`F=3`$ can not undergo inelastic collisions. One would therefore expect a purely exponential decay. However, the decay curve in Fig. 2 shows a faster loss of particles at higher particle numbers. It was checked that more than 95% of the particles are initially prepared in the absolute ground state so that inelastic collisions between trapped particles can be excluded. At particle numbers below $`10^4`$, the decay curve approaches a pure exponential with a decay constant of $`\gamma ^1=140(20)`$ s in agreement with the value found for atoms in the $`F=4`$ state.

The faster initial trap loss can be attributed to evaporation of high-energetic atoms from the trap leading to cooling . At the initial temperature, the trap depth $`U_0`$ is only about $`5k_\mathrm{B}T`$. Therefore there is a certain probability that atoms leave the trap after an elastic collision. The rate for elastic collisions is given by $`\overline{n}\sigma \overline{v}`$ with the cross section $`\sigma `$ and the mean relative velocity $`\overline{v}=4(k_\mathrm{B}T/\pi m)^{1/2}`$. For evaporative cooling to be effective, the ratio between the elastic collision rate (providing thermalization and evaporation) and the rate for inelastic collisions (causing losses and heating) has to be large.

Up to now, only one experiment is reported on evaporative cooling in an optical dipole trap . In order to achieve sufficiently high densities, Adams et al. stored sodium atoms in a crossed-beam dipole trap which provides tight confinement in all three dimensions. In the simple focused-beam geometry used in our experiment it is rather surprising to find evaporative cooling since the achievable densities are rather low. The reason that evaporation actually takes place lies in the long storage times of our trap on the one hand, and the anomalously large elastic cross section of cesium at low temperatures  on the other hand. Although the density of cesium atoms in the dipole trap is only of the order of $`10^9`$ atoms/cm3, one expects a thermalization time of only a few seconds due to the existence of a zero-energy resonance . This time scale is indeed more than an order of magnitude smaller than the storage time.

In Fig. 3, the temperature of the trapped atoms in the $`F=3`$ state is plotted versus storage time. Temperatures derived from the density distribution shown as the dots are in good agreement with measurements of ballistic expansion after release from the trap, which are shown as the three additional points in Fig. 3. One clearly observes cooling of the gas caused by evaporation of atoms from the trap at constant trap depth (plain evaporation). The final temperature of about 10$`\mu `$K corresponds to roughly 1/10 of the potential depth. Although the temperature is reduced by roughly a factor of 2 after 150 s, the phase-space density remains almost constant since the particle number diminishes by a factor of 10 at the same time. The temperature evolution for atoms in the $`F=4`$ state shows a similar behaviour, but with a slower decrease of the temperature. This is to be expected due to the faster initial density decrease through inelastic collisions and the according decrease in the rate of elastic collisions.

We apply a model developed by Luiten et al.  to simulate the temperature and particle number evolution during evaporation. Given the shape of the potential and the corresponding density of states, the model provides two coupled differential equations for the evolution of temperature and particle number. For the true potential function of a focused Gaussian beam, the density of states diverges as the energy approaches the escape energy of the trap. We therefore approximate the trap potential by a three-dimensional Gaussian $`U(𝐫)U_0\mathrm{exp}(2(x/w)^22(y/w)^2)(z/z_\mathrm{R})^2)`$ for which the density of states remains finite.

The potential is fully determined by the trap parameters, therefore the only adjustable parameter in the model is the the rate $`\gamma `$ for inelastic collisions with background gas and the cross section $`\sigma `$ for elastic collisions. In the temperature range considered here, mainly s-wave collisions contribute to the cross section. The large scattering length of cesium atoms in the $`F=3`$ ground state  results in a temperature-dependent effective cross section $`\sigma (T)=\pi ^2\mathrm{}^2/mk_\mathrm{B}T`$ (unitarity limit. Note, that the cross section in the unitarity limit is completely determined by the temperature. Since the model explicitly assumes a constant cross section for elastic collisions , we have fixed the effective cross section to the value $`\sigma =(930a_0)^2`$ ($`a_0`$ = Bohr radius) corresponding to a temperature of 15 $`\mu `$K.

The result of the simulation for $`\gamma ^1=130`$ s is shown by the solid line in Fig. 3. The model prediction for the time scale of temperature decrease is in reasonable agreement with the experimental data. As can be seen from Fig. 3, however, the model slightly overestimates the rate of evaporation. This discrepancy can be explained by the influence of gravity on the one hand, and the temperature dependence of the collision cross section on the other hand. Both effects are not contained in the model, adn are difficult to be included. Due to gravity, evaporation predominantly takes place in only one spatial dimension which slows down the cooling process . The temperature-dependent cross section gives rise to an increased thermalization time  so that the rate of evaporative cooling is decreased. Nevertheless, the final temperature of the evaporation process is correctly reproduced by the model. The model also shows that the initial faster loss of particles in the $`F=3`$-state (see curve in Fig. 2) mainly stems from the evaporation process.

Employing a low-cost, off-the-shelf CO2 laser without any longitudinal mode selection, our major concern was possible heating by laser-noise induced fluctuations of the trap potential. From the observation of evaporative cooling with a temperature decrease of about $`10\mu `$K over a time scale of 100 s, one can infer that heating rates by laser noise are much lower than 100 nK/s. From the storage times of several minutes one can infer a similar upper bound for the laser-noise induced heating rates.

Due to its simple ingredients, our setup represents a minimalistic version of an optical dipole trap providing very long storage times. The universality of the QUEST opens way to experiments aiming at fundamental questions. Atomic spin states can be prepared in the QUEST with very long coherence times which is of importance for applications in quantum computing and for the search of a permanent electric dipole moment of atoms. Another intriguing prospect is the formation and the storage of cold molecules. In the same dipole trap, we have recently also trapped lithium atoms achieving similar storage times as for cesium . Currently, we are studying the properties of a simultaneously stored mixture of both species in view of sympathetic cooling and photoassociation of cold heteronuclear dimers.

We gratefully acknowledge contributions of M. Nill in the early stage of the experiment and stimulating discussions with A. Mosk. We are indebted to D. Schwalm for encouragement and support.