Algebraic properties and spectral collapse in nonlinear quantum Rabi models

We investigate the origin of spectral collapse occurring in nonlinear Rabi Hamiltonians with an su(1,1) coupling scheme, showing how the collapse can be triggered by the competition between the Rabi parameter g and the field frequency W. The collapse already appears in the model Hamiltonian where the atomic-energy term is absent. After showing that su(1,1) is the dynamical algebra of the Hamiltonian, we demonstrate how the occurrence of spectral collapse can be directly related to the three types of equivalence classes characterizing the structure of this algebra. We highlight how the dramatic change of the spectrum significantly affects the structure of eigenstates represented in a suitable momentum–coordinate picture.