Link between \emph{Zitterbewegung} and topological phase transition

Abstract

Topological quantum state described by the global invariant has been extensively studied in theory and experiment. In this letter, we investigate the relationship between \emph{Zitterbewegung} and the topology of systems that reflect the properties of the local and whole energy bands, respectively. We generalize the usual two-band effective Hamiltonian to characterize the topological phase transition of the spin-$J$ topological insulator. By studying \emph{Zitterbewegung} dynamics before and after topological phase transition, we find that the direction of quasiparticles' oscillation can well reflect topological properties. Furthermore, we develop a quantitative calculation formula for the topological invariant in the spin-$J$ Chern insulator and give the selection rule of the corresponding dynamics. Finally, we demonstrate that our theory is valid in different topological systems. The topological invariant can be represented by local dynamical properties of the high-symmetry points in the first Brillouin zone, which provides a new measurement method from the dynamical perspective.