Work statistics of sudden quantum quenches: A random matrix theory perspective on Gaussianity and its deviations
The work distribution from sudden quantum quenches in quadratic fermionic chains is shown to follow Gaussian statistics governed by random matrix theory. The work variable is mapped to traces of powers of Haar-distributed unitaries, leading to a predicted variance dependent on the interaction structure. Non-Gaussian tails arise from specific structural features like many interaction terms or Fisher–Hartwig singularities.