Mass-Assisted Local Deconfinement in a Confined $\mathbb{Z}_2$ Lattice Gauge Theory

Abstract

Confinement is a prominent phenomenon in condensed matter and high-energy physics that has recently become the focus of quantum-simulation experiments of lattice gauge theories (LGTs). As such, a theoretical understanding of the effect of confinement on LGT dynamics is not only of fundamental importance, but can lend itself to upcoming experiments. Here, we show how confinement in a $\mathbb{Z}_2$ LGT can be locally avoided by proximity to a resonance between the fermion mass and the electric field strength. Furthermore, we show that this local deconfinement can become global for certain initial conditions, where information transport occurs over the entire chain. In addition, we show how this can lead to strong quantum many-body scarring starting in different initial states. Our findings provide deeper insights into the nature of confinement in $\mathbb{Z}_2$ LGTs and can be tested on current and near-term quantum devices.