Nonequilibrium quantum dynamics of partial symmetry breaking for ultracold bosons in an optical lattice ring trap

We explore the nonequilibrium quantum dynamics of partial symmetry-breaking in ring Bose-Einstein condensates described by the Bose-Hubbard Hamiltonian with an external potential. Using exact diagonalization and group theory for small systems, we establish three new concepts to predict and characterize the dynamics after a quantum quench: symmetry memory, critical symmetry-breaking strength, and the symmetry gap. Critical symmetry breaking can manifest in current reversals, but is most clearly observed in the symmetry memory operator, based on unitary rotations.