Electron and quasiparticle exponents of Haldane-Rezayi state in non-abelian fractional quantum Hall theory

The quasiparticle propagator of the Haldane-Rezayi (HR) fractional quantum Hall (FQH) state is calculated, based on a chiral fermion model (or a Weyl fermion model) equipped with a hidden spin SU(2) symmetry. The spectrum of the chiral fermion model for each total spin and total momentum is shown to be identical to that of the SU(2) c = −2 model introduced to describe the edge spectrum of the HR state.     

Maximal symmetry and mass generation of Dirac fermions and gravitational gauge field theory in six-dimensional spacetime

The relativistic Dirac equation in four-dimensional spacetime reveals a coherent relation between the dimensions of spacetime and the degrees of freedom of fermionic spinors. A massless Dirac fermion generates new symmetries corresponding to chirality spin and charge spin as well as conformal scaling transformations. With the introduction of intrinsic W-parity, a massless Dirac fermion can be treated as a Majorana-type or Weyl-type spinor in a six-dimensional spacetime that reflects the intrinsic quantum numbers of chirality spin. A generalized Dirac equation is obtained in the six-dimensional spacetime with a maximal symmetry. Based on the framework of gravitational quantum field theory proposed in Ref. [1] with the postulate of gauge invariance and coordinate independence, we arrive at a maximally symmetric gravitational gauge field theory for the massless Dirac fermion in six-dimensional spacetime. Such a theory is governed by the local spin gauge symmetry SP(1,5) and the global Poincar′e symmetry P(1,5)= SO(1,5) P~(1,5) as well as the charge spin gauge symmetry SU(2). The theory leads to the prediction of doubly electrically charged bosons. A scalar field and conformal scaling gauge field are introduced to maintain both global and local conformal scaling symmetries. A generalized gravitational Dirac equation for the massless Dirac fermion is derived in the six-dimensional spacetime. The equations of motion for gauge fields are obtained with conserved currents in the presence of gravitational effects. The dynamics of the gauge-type gravifield as a Goldstone-like boson is shown to be governed by a conserved energy-momentum tensor, and its symmetric part provides a generalized Einstein equation of gravity. An alternative geometrical symmetry breaking mechanism for the mass generation of Dirac fermions is demonstrated.     

Relating c < 0 and c > 0 conformal field theories

A ‘canonical mapping’ is established between the c = −1 system of bosonic ghosts and the c = 2 complex scalar theory and a similar mapping between the c = −2 system of fermionic ghosts and the c = 1 Dirac theory. The existence of this mapping is suggested by the identity of the characters of the respective theories. The respective c < 0 and c > 0 theories share the same space of states, whereas the spaces of conformal fields are different. Upon this mapping from their c < 0 counterparts, the (c > 0) complex scalar and the Dirac theories inherit hidden non-local sl(2) symmetries.     

A Chern-Simons effective field theory for the Pfaffian quantum Hall state

We present a low-energy effective field theory describing the universality class of the Pfaffian quantum Hall state. To arrive at this theory, we observe that the edge theory of the Pfaffian state of bosons at v = 1 is an SU(2)₂ Kac-Moody algebra. It follows that the corresponding bulk effective field theory is an SU(2) Chem-Simons theory with coupling constant k = 2. The effective field theories for other Pfaffian states, such as the fermionic one at v = 1/2 are obtained by a flux-attachment procedure. We discuss the non-Abelian statistics of quasiparticles in the context of this effective field theory.     

The enigma of the quantum Hall effect in graphene

We apply Laughlin’s gauge argument to analyze the ν=0 quantum Hall effect observed in graphene when the Fermi energy lies near the Dirac point, and conclude that this necessarily leads to divergent bulk longitudinal resistivity in the zero temperature thermodynamic limit. We further predict that in a Corbino geometry measurement, where edge transport and other mesoscopic effects are unimportant, one should find the longitudinal conductivity vanishing in all graphene samples which have an underlying ν=0 quantized Hall effect. We argue that this ν=0 graphene quantum Hall state is qualitatively similar to the high field insulating phase (also known as the Hall insulator) in the lowest Landau level of ordinary semiconductor two-dimensional electron systems. We establish the necessity of having a high magnetic field and high mobility samples for the observation of the divergent resistivity as arising from the existence of disorder-induced density inhomogeneity at the graphene Dirac point.     

Boundary conformal field theory and tunneling of edge quasiparticles in non-Abelian topological states

We explain how (perturbed) boundary conformal field theory allows us to understand the tunneling of edge quasiparticles in non-Abelian topological states. The coupling between a bulk non-Abelian quasiparticle and the edge is due to resonant tunneling to a zero mode on the quasiparticle, which causes the zero mode to hybridize with the edge. This can be reformulated as the flow from one conformally invariant boundary condition to another in an associated critical statistical mechanical model. Tunneling from one edge to another at a point contact can split the system in two, either partially or completely. This can be reformulated in the critical statistical mechanical model as the flow from one type of defect line to another. We illustrate these two phenomena in detail in the context of the ν=5/2 quantum Hall state and the critical Ising model. We briefly discuss the case of Fibonacci anyons and conclude by explaining the general formulation and its physical interpretation.     

Two-dimensional conformal invariant theories on a torus

The study of unitary conformal invariant theories on a torus reveals two important properties: the partition function and correlation functions may be expressed in terms of free (gaussian) field modes, and the modular invariance dictates the operator content of the theory: for a generic value of the central charge c = 1−/m(m + 1), there exist at least two distinct models depending whether m = 0,3 mod or m = 1,2 mod 4. The case of non-unitary c < 1 theories is also briefly discussed.     

Topological aspects of graphene

Topological aspects of the electronic properties of graphene, including edge effects, with the tight-binding model on a honeycomb lattice and its extensions to show the following: (i) Presence of the pair of massless Dirac dispersions, which is the origin of anomalous properties including a peculiar quantum Hall effect (QHE), is not accidental to honeycomb, but is generic for a class of two-dimensional lattices that interpolate between square and π-flux lattices. Topological stability guarantees persistence of the peculiar QHE. (ii) While we have the massless Dirac dispersion only around E=0, the anomalous QHE associated with the Dirac cone unexpectedly persists for a wide range of the chemical potential. The range is bounded by van Hove singularities, at which we predict a transition to the ordinary fermion behaviour accompanied by huge jumps in the QHE with a sign change. (iii) We establish a coincidence between the quantum Hall effect in the bulk and the quantum Hall effect for the edge states, which is another topological effect. We have also explicitly shown that the E=0 edge states in honeycomb in zero magnetic field persist in magnetic field. (iv) We have also identified a topological origin of the fermion doubling in terms of the chiral symmetry.     

Landau-Ginzburg theories for non-abelian quantum Hall states

We construct Landau-Ginzburg effective field theories for fractional quantum Hall states - such as the Pfaffian state - which exhibit non-abelian statistics. These theories rely on a Meissner construction which increases the level of a non-abelian Chem-Simons theory while simultaneously projecting out the unwanted degrees of freedom of a concomitant enveloping abelian theory. We describe this construction in the context of a system of bosons at Landau level filling factor ν = l, where the non-abelian symmetry is a dynamically generated SU(2) continuous extension of the discrete particle-hole symmetry of the lowest Landau level. We show how the physics of quasiparticles and their non-abelian statistics arises in this Landau-Ginzburg theory. We describe its relation to edge theories - where a coset construction plays the role of the Meissner projection — and discuss extensions to other states.     

Thermal transport in chiral conformal theories and hierarchical quantum Hall states

Chiral conformal field theories are characterized by a ground-state current at finite temperature, that could be observed, e.g., in the edge excitations of the quantum Hall effect. We show that the corresponding thermal conductance is directly proportional to the gravitational anomaly of the conformal theory, upon extending the well-known relation between specific heat and conformal anomaly. The thermal current could signal the elusive neutral edge modes that are expected in the hierarchical Hall states. We then compute the thermal conductance for the Abelian multi-component theory and the W_1+∞ minimal model, two conformal theories that are good candidates for describing the hierarchical states. Their conductances agree to leading order but differ in the first, universal finite-size correction, that could be used as a selective experimental signature.     

Quantum Torus Symmetry of the KP,KdV and BKP Hierarchies

In this paper, we construct the quantum torus symmetry of the KP hierarchy and further derive the quantum torus constraint on the tau function of the KP hierarchy. That means we give a nice representation of the quantum torus Lie algebra in the KP system by acting on its tau function. Comparing to the W _∞ symmetry, this quantum torus symmetry has a nice algebraic structure with double indices. Further by reduction, we also construct the quantum torus symmetries of the KdV and BKP hierarchies and further derive the quantum torus constraints on their tau functions. These quantum torus constraints might have applications in the quantum field theory, supersymmetric gauge theory and so on.     

Hidden symmetry in the presence of fluxes

We derive the most general first-order symmetry operator for the Dirac equation coupled to arbitrary fluxes. Such an operator is given in terms of an inhomogeneous form ω   which is a solution to a coupled system of first-order partial differential equations which we call the generalized conformal Killing–Yano system. Except trivial fluxes, solutions of this system are subject to additional constraints. We discuss various special cases of physical interest. In particular, we demonstrate that in the case of a Dirac operator coupled to the skew symmetric torsion and U(1)$U(1)$ field, the system of generalized conformal Killing–Yano equations decouples into the homogeneous conformal Killing–Yano equations with torsion introduced in D. Kubiznak et al. (2009) [8] and the symmetry operator is essentially the one derived in T. Houri et al. (2010) [9]. We also discuss the Dirac field coupled to a scalar potential and in the presence of 5-form and 7-form fluxes.     

硅烯中受电场调控的体能隙和朗道能级

近年来, 硅烯(单层硅)由于其独特的结构和电子性质以及在量子霍尔效应等领域的潜在应用而成为理论和实验研究的一个热点. 借助于四带次近邻紧束缚模型, 详细计算和研究了硅烯中受电场调制的体能隙和电子能级. 结果表明: 硅烯原胞中的两个子格处于不同的平面上, 可以通过外电场区分和控制这两个子格, 这将破坏在纯石墨烯中无法被破坏的K-K'对称性, 并消除由这一对称性导致的电子能级的二重简并; 外加电场还会引起硅烯中次近邻格点之间的Rashba自旋轨道耦合, 这一作用会在不同狄拉克点有选择地消除电子能级在部分电场点的简并, 相邻能级从交叉状态变为反交叉状态; 电子能级中除一些孤立的交叉点外, 每个能级都具有确定的自旋取向, 石墨烯中电子能级的四重简并在硅烯中被完全消除, 从而导致填充因子ν=0, ±1, ±2, ±3,…的量子霍尔平台.     

Superconducting plate in a transverse magnetic field: New state

A model is proposed for describing Cooper pairs near the transition (in temperature and magnetic field) point when their spacing is larger than their size. The essence of the model is as follows: the Ginzburg-Landau functional is written in operator form in terms of field operators of the Bose type so that the average value of the density operator gives the concentration of Cooper pairs, and the same Ginzburg-Landau expression is obtained for the Bose condensate. The model is applied to a superconducting plate with a thickness smaller than the size of a pair in a transverse magnetic field near its upper critical value H _c2. A new state is discovered that is energetically more advantageous in a certain interval in the vicinity of the transition point as compared to the Abrikosov vortex state. The wavefunction of the system in this state is of the type of the Laughlin function used in the fractional quantum Hall effect (naturally, as applied to Cooper pairs as Bose particles in our case) and corresponds to a homogeneous incompressible fluid. The energy of this state is proportional to the first power of quantity (1 ? H/H _c2) in contrast to the energy of the vortex state containing the square of this quantity. The interval of the existence of the new state is the larger, the dirtier the sample.     

Topological order and semions in a strongly correlated quantum spin Hall insulator

We provide a self-consistent mean-field framework to study the effect of strong interactions in a quantum spin Hall insulator on the honeycomb lattice. We identify an exotic phase for large spin-orbit coupling and intermediate Hubbard interaction. This phase is gapped and does not break any symmetry. Instead, we find a fourfold topological degeneracy of the ground state on the torus and fractionalized excitations with semionic mutual braiding statistics. Moreover, we argue that it has gapless edge modes protected by time-reversal symmetry but a trivial Z(2) topological invariant. Finally, we discuss the experimental signatures of this exotic phase. Our work highlights the important theme that interesting phases arise in the regime of strong spin-orbit coupling and interactions.     

Effective field theory and tunneling currents in the fractional quantum Hall effect

We review the construction of a low-energy effective field theory and its state space for “abelian” quantum Hall fluids. The scaling limit of the incompressible fluid is described by a Chern–Simons theory in 2+1 dimensions on a manifold with boundary. In such a field theory, gauge invariance implies the presence of anomalous chiral modes localized on the edge of the sample. We assume a simple boundary structure, i.e., the absence of a reconstructed edge. For the bulk, we consider a multiply connected planar geometry. We study tunneling processes between two boundary components of the fluid and calculate the tunneling current to lowest order in perturbation theory as a function of dc bias voltage. Particular attention is paid to the special cases when the edge modes propagate at the same speed, and when they exhibit two significantly distinct propagation speeds. We distinguish between two “geometries” of interference contours corresponding to the (electronic) Fabry–Perot and Mach–Zehnder interferometers, respectively. We find that the interference term in the current is absent when exactly one hole in the fluid corresponding to one of the two edge components involved in the tunneling processes lies inside the interference contour (i.e., in the case of a Mach–Zehnder interferometer). We analyze the dependence of the tunneling current on the state of the quantum Hall fluid and on the external magnetic flux through the sample.     

Stable hierarchical quantum Hall fluids as W1+∞ minimal models

In this paper, we pursue our analysis of the W_1+∞ symmetry of the low-energy edge excitations of incompressible quantum Hall fluids. These excitations are described by (1 + 1)-dimensional effective field theories, which are built by representations of the W_1+∞ algebra. Generic W_1+∞ theories predict many more fluids than the few, stable ones found in experiments. Here we identify a particular class of W_1+∞ theories, the minimal models, which are made of degenerate representations only - a familiar construction in conformal field theory. The W_1+∞ minimal models exist for specific values of the fractional Hall conductivity, which nicely fit the experimental data and match the results of the Jain hierarchy of quantum Hall fluids. We thus obtain a new hierarchical construction, which is based uniquely on the concept of quantum incompressible fluid and is independent of Jain's approach and hypotheses. Furthermore, a surprising non-abelian structure is found in the W_1+∞ minimal models: they possess neutral quark-like excitations with SU(m) quantum numbers and non-abelian fractional statistics. The physical electron is made of anyon and quark excitations. We discuss some properties of these neutral excitations which could be seen in experiments and numerical simulations.