Topological phases of a dimerized Fermi–Hubbard model for semiconductor nano-lattices

Motivated by recent advances in fabricating artificial lattices in semiconductors and their promise for quantum simulation of topological materials, we study the one-dimensional dimerized Fermi–Hubbard model. We show how the topological phases at half-filling can be characterized by a reduced Zak phase defined based on the reduced density matrix of each spin subsystem. Signatures of bulk–boundary correspondence are observed in the triplon excitation of the bulk and the edge states of uncoupled spins at the boundaries. At quarter-filling, we show that owing to the presence of the Hubbard interaction the system can undergo a transition to the topological ground state of the non-interacting Su–Schrieffer–Heeger model with the application of a moderate-strength external magnetic field. We propose a robust experimental realization with a chain of dopant atoms in silicon or gate-defined quantum dots in GaAs where the transition can be probed by measuring the tunneling current through the many-body state of the chain.