Gauge Invariant Formulation of the Semiconductor Bloch Equations.

ABSTRACT

We derive gauge invariant semiconductor Bloch equations (GI-SBEs) that contain only gauge invariant band structure; shift vectors, and triple phase products. The validity and utility of the GI-SBEs is demonstrated in intense laser driven solids with broken inversion symmetry and nontrivial topology. The GI-SBEs present a useful platform for modeling and interpreting light-matter interactions in solids, in which the gauge freedom of the Bloch basis functions obscures physics and creates numerical obstacles.