Operator thermalization vs eigenstate thermalization

Abstract

We study the characteristics of thermalizing and non-thermalizing operators in integrable theories as we turn on a non-integrable deformation. Specifically, we show that $\sigma^z$, an operator that thermalizes in the integrable transverse field Ising model, has mean matrix elements that resemble ETH, but with fluctuations around the mean that are sharply suppressed. This suppression rapidly dwindles as the Ising model becomes non-integrable by the turning on of a longitudinal field. We also construct a non-thermalizing operator in the integrable regime, which slowly approaches the ETH form as the theory becomes non-integrable. At intermediate values of the non-integrable deformation, one distinguishes a perturbatively long relaxation time for this operator.