Interplay between Quantum Metric and Hybridized Collective Mode in Flat-Band Superfluids

Abstract

We investigate collective excitations in flat-band superfluids by incorporating the coupled dynamics of pairing (phase and amplitude) and density fluctuations. We demonstrate that for any time-reversal symmetric superfluid system with an isolated flat band, only a single low-energy collective mode emerges in the long-wavelength limit. In contrast to the linearly dispersive Goldstone mode in conventional superfluids, this hybridized mode is gapless at zero momentum but exhibits a quadratic dispersion ($ω\propto q^2$) at small momenta. We show that the dispersion coefficients of this collective mode are governed by the normal-state quantum metric of the flat band. These analytical predictions are in excellent agreement with numerical calculations. Our results are applicable to any generic $s$-wave flat-band superfluid, provided the flat band is energetically well separated from other dispersive bands.