Universal Dynamical Scaling of Strong-to-Weak Spontaneous Symmetry Breaking in Open Quantum Systems

Abstract

Strong-to-weak spontaneous symmetry breaking (SWSSB) defines a mixed-state phase of matter--without a pure-state counterpart--in which nonlinear observables such as the R\'enyi-2 correlator develop long-range order while conventional linear correlations remain short-ranged. Here we study the emergence of SWSSB in one-dimensional open quantum systems governed by Lindbladian evolution, where the transition time diverges with system size and SWSSB appears only asymptotically in the steady state. By tracking the late-time growth of the R\'enyi-2 correlation length, we uncover a universal dynamical regime controlled purely by the symmetry class of the Lindbladian. Contrary to the conventional expectation that late-time dynamics are governed by the low-lying Liouvillian spectrum, we find that the time dependence of the SWSSB transition--exponential versus algebraic--is dictated solely by symmetry, independent of details of the Lindbladian, including whether the Liouvillian spectrum is gapped or gapless. For $\mathbb{Z}_2$-symmetric dynamics, the R\'enyi-2 correlation length grows exponentially in time--even when the spectrum is gapless--yielding an effective transition time $t_c \propto \operatorname{ln} L$ and enabling rapid preparation of the $\mathbb{Z}_2$ SWSSB steady state. In contrast, U(1)-symmetric dynamics exhibit algebraic scaling, $t_c \propto L^{\alpha}$, with a filling-dependent dynamical exponent: ballistic growth ($\alpha \approx 1$) at finite filling crosses over to diffusive scaling ($\alpha = 2$) in the zero-filling limit. These results establish symmetry--rather than spectral gap structure--as the controlling principle for SWSSB late-time dynamical scaling, and open a new route to nonequilibrium symmetry breaking in open quantum systems.