Exact Mobility Edges in a Disorder-Free Dimerized Stark Lattice with Effective Unbounded Hopping

Abstract

We propose a disorder-free one-dimensional single-particle Hamiltonian hosting an exact mobility edge (ME), placing the system outside the assumptions of no-go theorems regarding unbounded potentials. By applying a linear Stark potential selectively to one sublattice of a dimerized chain, we generate an effective Hamiltonian with unbounded, staggered hopping amplitudes. The unbounded nature of the hopping places the model outside the scope of the Simon-Spencer theorem, while the staggered scaling allows it to evade broader constraints on Jacobi matrices. We analytically derive the bulk spectrum in reciprocal space, identifying a sharp ME where the energy magnitude equals the inter-cell hopping strength. This edge separates a continuum of extended states from two distinct localized branches: a standard unbounded Wannier-Stark ladder and an anomalous bounded branch accumulating at the ME. The existence of extended states is supported by finite-size scaling of the inverse participation ratio up to system sizes $L\sim 10^9$. Furthermore, we propose an experimental realization using photonic frequency synthetic dimensions. Our numerical results indicate that the ME is robust against potential experimental imperfections, including frequency detuning errors and photon loss, establishing a practical path for observing MEs in disorder-free systems.

14 pages, 6 figures