Entanglement spectra of the two-dimensional Affleck-Kennedy-Lieb-Tasaki model: Correspondence between the valence-bond-solid state and conformal field theory

We investigate the entanglement properties of the valence-bond-solid (VBS) state defined on two-dimensional lattices, which is the exact ground state of the Affleck-Kennedy-Lieb-Tasaki model. It is shown that the entanglement entropy obeys an area law and the nonuniversal prefactor of the leading term is strictly less than ln 2. The analysis of entanglement spectra for various lattices reveals that the reduced density matrix associated with the VBS state is closely related to a thermal density matrix of a holographic spin chain, the spectrum of which is reminiscent of that of the spin-1/2 Heisenberg chain. This correspondence is further supported by comparing the entanglement entropy in the holographic spin chain with conformal field theory predictions.