中国物理B ›› 2019, Vol. 28 ›› Issue (1): 17402-017402.doi: 10.1088/1674-1056/28/1/017402

• CONDENSED MATTER: ELECTRONIC STRUCTURE, ELECTRICAL, MAGNETIC, AND OPTICAL PROPERTIES • 上一篇    下一篇

Quantum critical duality in two-dimensional Dirac semimetals

Jiang Zhou(周江), Ya-Jie Wu(吴亚杰), Su-Peng Kou(寇谡鹏)   

  1. 1 Department of Physics, Guizhou University, Guiyang 550025, China;
    2 School of Science, Xi'an Technological University, Xi'an 710032, China;
    3 Department of Physics, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
  • 收稿日期:2018-06-20 修回日期:2018-10-27 出版日期:2019-01-05 发布日期:2019-01-05
  • 通讯作者: Su-Peng Kou E-mail:spkou@bnu.edu.cn
  • 基金资助:

    Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 11647111, 11504285, and 11674026) and the Research Start-up Funds of Guizhou University, China (Grant No. 201538).

Quantum critical duality in two-dimensional Dirac semimetals

Jiang Zhou(周江)1, Ya-Jie Wu(吴亚杰)2, Su-Peng Kou(寇谡鹏)3   

  1. 1 Department of Physics, Guizhou University, Guiyang 550025, China;
    2 School of Science, Xi'an Technological University, Xi'an 710032, China;
    3 Department of Physics, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
  • Received:2018-06-20 Revised:2018-10-27 Online:2019-01-05 Published:2019-01-05
  • Contact: Su-Peng Kou E-mail:spkou@bnu.edu.cn
  • Supported by:

    Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 11647111, 11504285, and 11674026) and the Research Start-up Funds of Guizhou University, China (Grant No. 201538).

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摘要：

Quantum criticality is closely related to the existence of two phases with unrelated symmetry breaking. In this paper, we study Néel and Kekulé valence bond state (VBS) quantum criticality in Dirac semimetals with four-fermion interactions. Our results show that all possible dynamical masses yield the same critical coupling, which exhibits the phenomenon that all possible phases meet at a multicritical point (e.g., a tricritical point for the Néel, Kekulé-VBS and semimetallic phases). In terms of the well-established Wess-Zumino-Witten field theory, we investigate the typical criticality for the transition between Néel and Kekulé-VBS phases, and the compatible Néel-Kekulé-VBS mass matrices imply the existence of a non-Landau transition between the Néel and Kekulé-VBS phases. We show the existence of mutual duality in the defect-driven Néel-Kekulé-VBS transition near the non-Landau critical point and find that this mutual duality results from the presence of a mutual Chern-Simons term. We also study the mutual duality based on dual topological excitations.

关键词: quantum criticality, duality, semimetal-insulator transition, spin-charge separation

Abstract:

Quantum criticality is closely related to the existence of two phases with unrelated symmetry breaking. In this paper, we study Néel and Kekulé valence bond state (VBS) quantum criticality in Dirac semimetals with four-fermion interactions. Our results show that all possible dynamical masses yield the same critical coupling, which exhibits the phenomenon that all possible phases meet at a multicritical point (e.g., a tricritical point for the Néel, Kekulé-VBS and semimetallic phases). In terms of the well-established Wess-Zumino-Witten field theory, we investigate the typical criticality for the transition between Néel and Kekulé-VBS phases, and the compatible Néel-Kekulé-VBS mass matrices imply the existence of a non-Landau transition between the Néel and Kekulé-VBS phases. We show the existence of mutual duality in the defect-driven Néel-Kekulé-VBS transition near the non-Landau critical point and find that this mutual duality results from the presence of a mutual Chern-Simons term. We also study the mutual duality based on dual topological excitations.

Key words: quantum criticality, duality, semimetal-insulator transition, spin-charge separation

中图分类号:  (Quantum critical phenomena)

  • 74.40.Kb
73.22.Gk (Broken symmetry phases) 71.30.+h (Metal-insulator transitions and other electronic transitions)