The research in KITS is to focus on theoretical physics and related interdisciplinary fields. Currently there are two groups, the Higher Energy Physics group and Condensed Matter Physics group.
Higher Energy Physics Theory (HET) group
HET is a theoretical group driven by interests in fundamental laws of nature. Our research varies in a range of topics in quantum field theories (QFT), gravitational theories and string theory, including AdS/CFT correspondence, conformal bootstrap, scattering amplitude, chaotic systems and novel aspects of black hole and wormhole physics.
The hero of our research is the AdS/CFT correspondence which is more or less the modern guiding principle of studying both quantum gravity (QG) and QFT. This correspondence between the two types of theories allows us to translate complex problem in one theory into a more tractable problem in the language of the other. We are using the modern tools which are developed in the study of AdS/CFT such as quantum entanglement entropy and modular Hamiltonian to understand novel features and phenomena in QFT, QG such as the superconductivity, strange metal and information paradox of black holes. Meanwhile we are trying to develop new tools for examples for computing scattering amplitudes in AdS spacetime and for bootstrapping conformal field theories. Ultimately we want to explore the the deep underlying origin of the correspondence and trying to go beyond. For details, see the faculties's individual webpage.
Our programs are also closely integrated with the corresponding activities at UCAS, ITP and ICTP-AP via joint seminars as well as frequent informal contacts.
At the moment, we have five faculties, five postdocs (more are coming in the new semester) and several graduate students.
We hold Journal club at the Friday afternoon in 401, building 7 Zhongguancun campus.
We organize HET-th Seminar every Tuesday morning in 401, building 7 Zhongguancun campus.
We have student reading club on weekends. See 'Student Reading Club' for time and location information.
We also occasionally organize a two-week summer or winter schools. See our past school here https://kits2021.github.io.
Condensed Matter Physics Theory (CMT) group
CMT is a very diverse field that approaches the properties of phases of matter from different point of views and different scales. It is hard to define of border of the CMT, and it is still developing fast. In KITS, we are interested in a various range of topics, including strongly correlated systems, high-Tc superconductors, topological phases of matter, quantum phase transitions, spintronics, dynamical systems, and etc.
One of our interests is strongly correlated system, which is a fascinating and rich area that includes e.g. high-Tc superconductivity, spin models, (fractional) quantum hall, and recently developed topics such as symmetry protect topology (SPT) and Sachdev-Ye-Kitaev (SYK) model. In KITS, we tackle such systems both theoretically and numerically. Theoretical methods are widely developed (e.g. RG and cluster theory), and especially for one-spatial systems, non-perturbative or even exact solutions can be done in some special cases. Numerical methods provide results that sometimes hardly achievable solely by theorical calculations and help us understand the properties of the quantum phases of matter more comprehensively. We have experts in (density matrix renormalization group) DMRG and (quantum Monte Carlo) QMC in our CMT group.
Another topic that we focus on is the topology of quantum matters. Since the work of TKNN, CMT physicists are able to characterize phases of matter beyond symmetry-breaking paradigm. In the weak interacting limit, we study topological aspects of condensed matter systems in topological band insulators and superconductors, and their quantized responses associated with their characters. In the strongly interacting limit, we study the theory of SPT for the symmetric case, where theoretical techniques are closely related to group cohomology theory. In KITS, we are developing an integrated tensor network formalism for SPT phases, where we want to represent the wave-functions, symmetric operations, topological defects, and anyon excitations, all in one formalism.