2 + 1 dimensional de Sitter universe emerging from the gauge structure of a nonlinear quantum system.

Berry phases and gauge structures are fundamental quantum phenomena. In linear quantum mechanics the gauge field in parameter space presents monopole singularities where the energy levels become degenerate. In nonlinear quantum mechanics, which is an effective theory of interacting quantum systems, there can be phase transitions and hence critical surfaces in the parameter space. We find that these critical surfaces result in a new type of gauge field singularity, namely, a conic singularity that resembles the big bang of a 2 + 1 dimensional de Sitter universe, with the fundamental frequency of Bogoliubov excitations acting as the cosmic scale, and mode softening at the critical surface, where the fundamental frequency vanishes, causing a causal singularity. Such conic singularity may be observed in various systems such as Bose-Einstein condensates and molecular magnets. This finding offers a new approach to quantum simulation of fundamental physics.