Dynamics of Majorana zero modes across a hybrid Kitaev chain

Abstract

The Kitaev chain has been extensively explored in the context of uniform couplings, with studies focusing either on purely nearest-neighbor interactions or on systems dominated by long-range superconducting pairing. Building on these investigations, we introduce a hybrid Kitaev chain in which the lattice is partitioned into two segments: the left segment comprises nearest-neighbor couplings, while the right segment incorporates long-range pairing. To probe the role of the interface, we study two scenarios: a decoupled (suppressed hopping) case, where the segments are isolated, and a coupled case, where they are connected via interface hopping that enables tunneling. Using this setup, we investigate the behavior of Majorana zero modes at the interface between the two segments, finding that in the decoupled case, Majorana zero modes remain sharply localized at the left segment chain edges while massive Dirac modes remain in right segment chain edges, with their energies and localization strongly dependent on the long-range pairing exponent. Introducing a finite interface coupling enables transfer of Majorana zero modes from the edges of the left segment to those of the right segment of the chain. We characterize this dynamics by the fidelity of state transfer, dynamical rotation, and inverse participation ratio. We show the signature of Majorana zero mode transfer across the interface by the spatiotemporal profile of the probability distribution of the time evolved state. © 2025 American Physical Society