Evolution of order and chaos across a first-order quantum phase transition

Abstract

We study the evolution of the dynamics across a generic first order quantum phase transition in an interacting boson model of nuclei. The dynamics inside the phase coexistence region exhibits a very simple pattern. A classical analysis reveals a robustly regular dynamics confined to the deformed region and well separated from a chaotic dynamics ascribed to the spherical region. A quantum analysis discloses regular bands of states in the deformed region, which persist to energies well above the phase-separating barrier, in the face of a complicated environment. The impact of kinetic collective rotational terms on this intricate interplay of order and chaos is investigated.