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arXiv · 2608.00157

An asymptotically solvable model of many-body critical phases: mobility edges, scars, and inverted scars

Yi-Ting Tu·Zi-Jian Li·Sankar Das Sarma
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Abstract

While the prethermal regime of random many-body localized (MBL) systems is dominated by accidental many-body resonances, another class of resonances, originating from the underlying potential structure, is expected in large-size deterministic systems. It is known that this class of resonances can lead to single-particle critical phases that are neither localized nor extended, but the consequences in interacting systems remain unclear. In this work, we construct an asymptotically solvable model of a one-dimensional nearest-neighbor interacting spin chain, whose spatial structure induces a hierarchy of mirror-like many-body resonances. We derive two phases in the thermodynamic limit, characterized by the satisfaction and violation of a version of the weak eigenstate thermalization hypothesis (ETH). While these two phases are similar to the usual MBL and ETH phases, there exist rare eigenstates that behave like the opposite phase, interpreted as many-body scars and inverted scars. Surprisingly, the two phases can be separated by a finite-temperature phase transition, corresponding to a thermodynamic many-body mobility edge, which was often believed to be impossible. Our results also suggest the existence of delocalized rare regions in an otherwise-localized interacting Aubry-André model, even if there are no low-disorder regions like those in random systems. This challenges the common belief that there is no avalanche instability in quasiperiodic MBL.

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Yi-Ting Tu, Zi-Jian Li, Sankar Das Sarma. 2026-07-31. An asymptotically solvable model of many-body critical phases: mobility edges, scars, and inverted scars. https://arxiv.org/abs/2608.00157

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