Dynamical solitons and boson fractionalization in cold-atom topological insulators

Abstract: We study the $\mathbb{Z}_2$ Bose-Hubbard model at incommensurate densities, which describes a one-dimensional system of interacting bosons whose tunneling is dressed by a dynamical $\mathbb{Z}_2$ field. At commensurate densities, the model is known to host intertwined topological phases, where long-range order coexists with non-trivial topological properties. This interplay between spontaneous symmetry breaking (SSB) and topological symmetry protection gives rise to interesting fractional topological phenomena when the system is doped to certain incommensurate fillings. In particular, we hereby show how topological defects in the $\mathbb{Z}_2$ field can appear in the ground state, connecting different SSB sectors. These defects are dynamical and can travel through the lattice carrying both a topological charge and a fractional particle number. In the hardcore limit, this phenomenon can be understood through a bulk-defect correspondence. Using a pumping argument, we show that it survives also for finite interactions, demonstrating how boson fractionalization can occur in strongly-correlated bosonic systems, the main ingredients of which have already been realized in cold-atom experiments.