Ground-state factorization and quantum phase transition in dimerized spin chains

We study the occurrence of ground-state factorization in dimerized XY spin chains in a transverse field. Together with the usual ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic regimes, a third case emerges, with no analogous in translationally invariant systems, consisting of an antiferromagnetic Neél-type ground state where pairs of spins represent the unitary cell. Then, we calculate the exact solution of the model and show that the factorizing field represent an accidental degeneracy point of the Hamiltonian. Finally, we extend the study of the existence of ground-state factorization to a more general class of models.