On ℤ2-indices for ground states of fermionic chains

Abstract

For parity-conserving fermionic chains, we review how to associate [Formula: see text]-indices to ground states in finite systems with quadratic and higher-order interactions as well as to quasifree ground states on the infinite CAR algebra. It is shown that the [Formula: see text]-valued spectral flow provides a topological obstruction for two systems to have the same [Formula: see text]-index. A rudimentary definition of a [Formula: see text]-phase label for a class of parity-invariant and pure ground states of the one-dimensional infinite CAR algebra is also provided. Ground states with differing phase labels cannot be connected without a closing of the spectral gap of the infinite GNS Hamiltonian.