Quantum phase transitions in the dimerized extended Bose-Hubbard model

We present an unbiased numerical density-matrix renormalization group study of the one-dimensional Bose-Hubbard model supplemented by nearest-neighbor Coulomb interaction and bond dimerization. It places the emphasis on the determination of the ground-state phase diagram and shows that, besides dimerized Mott and density-wave insulating phases, an intermediate symmetry-protected topological Haldane insulator emerges at weak Coulomb interactions for filling factor one, which disappears, however, when the dimerization becomes too large. Analyzing the critical behavior of the model, we prove that the phase boundaries of the Haldane phase to Mott insulator and density-wave states belong to the Gaussian and Ising universality classes with central charges c=1 and c=1/2, respectively, and merge in a tricritical point. Interestingly we can demonstrate a direct Ising quantum phase transition between the dimerized Mott and density-wave phases above the tricritical point. The corresponding transition line terminates at a critical end point that belongs to the universality class of the dilute Ising model with c=7/10. At even stronger Coulomb interactions the transition becomes first order.