Magnetic-field-induced Mott transition in a quasi-two-dimensional organic conductor

We investigated the effect of magnetic field on the highly correlated metal near the Mott transition in the quasi-two-dimensional layered organic conductor, kappa-(BEDT-TTF)(2)Cu[N(CN)(2)]Cl, by the resistance measurements under control of temperature, pressure, and magnetic field. It was demonstrated that the marginal metallic phase near the Mott transition is susceptible to the field-induced localization transition of the first order, as was predicted theoretically. The thermodynamic consideration of the present results gives a conceptual pressure-field phase diagram of the Mott transition at low temperatures.     

Mixed density wave state in quasi-2D organic conductor

The density wave phase of α-$\alpha \mathrm{-}$(BEDT-TTF)₂KHg(SCN)₄ was investigated by transport properties and magnetic susceptibility. The density wave transition was observed as a broad increase at T_DW$T_{\mathrm{DW}}$=9 K by resistance measurement. Temperature dependence of the static magnetic susceptibility χ$\chi$ shows a large Curie tail below 100 K. By subtracting the Curie component, we found that the magnetic susceptibility increases like weak ferromagnetism with decreasing temperature below 7.4 K. The gradual increase of χ$\chi$ below T_DW$T_{\mathrm{DW}}$ is not expected in simple CDW or SDW, where the magnetic susceptibility decreases with decreasing temperature due to the reduction of Pauli paramagnetic component. To explain the weak ferromagnetic behavior, we consider the coexistence of CDW and SDW. We propose a model of the mixed density wave, where CDW exists with antiferromagnetically coupled canting spins.     

Superfluid to Mott insulator quantum phase transition in a 2D permanent magnetic lattice

The accessibility of the critical parameters for the superfluid to Mott insulator quantum phase transition in a 2D permanent magnetic lattice is investigated. We determine the hopping matrix element J, the on-site interaction U, and hence the ratio J/U, in the harmonic oscillator wave function approximation. We show that for a range of realistic parameters the critical values of J/U, predicted by different methods for the Bose-Hubbard model in 2D, such as mean field theory and Monte Carlo simulations, are accessible in a 2D permanent magnetic lattice. The calculations are performed for a 2D permanent magnetic lattice created by two crossed arrays of parallel rectangular magnets plus a bias magnetic field.     

Mott transition in ruby lattice Hubbard model

Mott transition in a ruby lattice with fermions described by the Hubbard model including on-site repulsive interaction is investigated by combining the cellular dynamical mean-field theory and the continuous-time quantum Monte Carlo algorithm. The effect of temperature and on-site repulsive interaction on the metallic–insulating phase transition in ruby lattice with fermions is discussed based on the density of states and double occupancy. In addition, the magnetic property of each phase is discussed by defining certain magnetic order parameters. Our results show that the antiferromagnetic metal is found at the low temperature and weak interaction region and the antiferromagnetic insulating phase is found at the low temperature and strong interaction region. The paramagnetic metal appears in whole on-site repulsive interaction region when the temperature is higher than a certain value and the paramagnetic insulator appears at the middle scale of temperature and on-site repulsive interaction.     

Kondo breakdown as a selective Mott transition in the Anderson lattice

We show within the slave-boson technique that the Anderson lattice model exhibits a Kondo breakdown quantum critical point where the hybridization goes to zero at zero temperature. At this fixed point, the f electrons experience as well a selective Mott transition separating a local-moment phase from a Kondo-screened phase. The presence of a multiscale quantum critical point in the Anderson lattice in the absence of magnetism is discussed in the context of heavy fermion compounds. This study is the first evidence for a selective Mott transition in the Anderson lattice.     

Mott transition in a valence-bond solid insulator with a triangular lattice

We have investigated the Mott transition in a quasi-two-dimensional Mott insulator EtMe{3}P[Pd(dmit){2}]{2} with a spin-frustrated triangular-lattice in hydrostatic pressure and magnetic-field [Et and Me denote C2H5 and CH3, respectively, and Pd(dmit){2} (dmit=1,3-dithiole-2-thione-4,5-dithiolate,dithiolate) is an electron-acceptor molecule]. In the pressure-temperature (P-T) phase diagram, a valence-bond solid phase is found to neighbor the superconductor and metal phases at low temperatures. The profile of the phase diagram is common to those of Mott insulators with antiferromagnetic order. In contrast to the antiferromagnetic Mott insulators, the resistivity in the metallic phase exhibits anomalous temperature dependence, rho=rho{0}+AT(2.5).     

Mott insulator-superfluid phase transition in a detuned multi-connected Jaynes-Cummings lattice

The connectivity and tunability of superconducting quantum devices provide a rich platform to build quantum simulators and study novel many-body physics. Here we study quantum phase transition in a detuned multi-connected Jaynes-Cummings lattice, which can be constructed with superconducting circuits. This model is composed of alternatively connected qubits and cavity modes.Using a numerical method, we show that by varying the detuning between the qubits and the cavities, a phase transition from the superfluid phase to the Mott insulator phase occurs at commensurate fillings in a one-dimensional array. We study the phase transition in lattices with symmetric and asymmetric couplings, respectively.     

Mott transition from a spin liquid to a Fermi liquid in the spin-frustrated organic conductor kappa-(ET)2Cu2(CN)3

The pressure-temperature phase diagram of the organic Mott insulator kappa-(ET)2Cu2(CN)3, a model system of the spin liquid on triangular lattice, has been investigated by 1H NMR and resistivity measurements. The spin-liquid phase is persistent before the Mott transition to the metal or superconducting phase under pressure. At the Mott transition, the spin fluctuations are rapidly suppressed and the Fermi-liquid features are observed in the temperature dependence of the spin-lattice relaxation rate and resistivity. The characteristic curvature of the Mott boundary in the phase diagram highlights a crucial effect of the spin frustration on the Mott transition.     

Mott transition and sign problem for a model of lattice fermions

We consider a model of spinless fermions on the square latticeZ ² with an interaction potential of strengthU>0 at distance one and strengthJ at distance two, in the largeU limit |t|, |J|U, wheret is the hopping amplitude. As the chemical potential is varied, ift=T=0 we find three different phases corresponding to full, half and zero filling fractions. We study the system at low temperatureT0 by a method involving a canonical transformation and a functional integral representation. IfT=0 we locate the phase boundaries of the Mott metal-insulator transition for all |J|U with upper and lower bounds, show that mean field theory is valid ifJ<0 but fails forJ=0 when also the Peierls condition is violated. This result is a quantum extension of the Pirogov-Sinai theory of phase transitions. IfT>0 we have only one sided bounds for the phase boundaries and we can't validate mean field theory in caseJ<0. We introduce a new resummation scheme for low temperature expansions which yields finite and convergent perturbation series and permits us to study issues like the sign problem. Our algorithm gives an optimal canonical transformation for the functional integral such that the expectation of the sign observableS is exp , whereV is the volume and =T ^–1.Partially supported by the Ambrose Monell Foundation during a visit to the Institute for Advanced study.     

Dielectric catastrophe at the Mott transition

We study the Mott transition as a function of interaction strength in the half-filled Hubbard chain with next-nearest-neighbor hopping t' by calculating the response to an external electric field using the density matrix renormalization group. The electric susceptibility chi diverges when approaching the critical point from the insulating side. We show that the correlation length xi characterizing this transition is directly proportional to fluctuations of the polarization and that chi approximately xi2. The critical behavior shows that the transition is infinite order for all t', whether or not a spin gap is present, and that hyperscaling holds.     

Spin liquid state in an organic Mott insulator with a triangular lattice

1H NMR and static susceptibility measurements have been performed in an organic Mott insulator with a nearly isotropic triangular lattice, kappa-(BEDT-TTF)2Cu2(CN)(3), which is a model system of frustrated quantum spins. The static susceptibility is described by the spin S=1/2 antiferromagnetic triangular-lattice Heisenberg model with the exchange constant J approximately 250 K. Regardless of the large magnetic interactions, the 1H NMR spectra show no indication of long-range magnetic ordering down to 32 mK, which is 4 orders of magnitude smaller than J. These results suggest that a quantum spin liquid state is realized in the close proximity of the superconducting state appearing under pressure.     

Recent advances in quasi-2D superconductors via organic molecule intercalation

Superconductivity at the 2D limit shows emergent novel quantum phenomena, including anomalously enhanced H_c2, quantum metallic states and quantum Griffiths singularity, which has attracted much attention in the field of condensed matter physics. In this article, we focus on new advances in quasi-2D superconductors in the bulk phase using an organic molecular electrochemical intercalation method. The enhanced superconductivity and emergent pseudogap behavior in these quasi-2D superconductors are summarized with a further prospect.     

Spectroscopic signatures of a bandwidth-controlled Mott transition at the surface of 1T-TaSe2

High-resolution angle-resolved photoemission data show that a metal-insulator Mott transition occurs at the surface of the quasi-two-dimensional compound 1T-TaSe2. The transition is driven by the narrowing of the Ta 5d band induced by a temperature-dependent modulation of the atomic positions. A dynamical mean-field theory calculation of the spectral function of the half-filled Hubbard model captures the main qualitative feature of the data, namely, the rapid transfer of spectral weight from the observed quasiparticle peak at the Fermi surface to the Hubbard bands, as the correlation gap opens up.     

Exciton-plasma Mott transition in CdSe at 77K

Photoluminescence spectra of CdSe obtained in conditions of moderate excitation densities show anomalies in the behavior of peak position and intensity. These anomalies, on the basis of the optical gain and in the shift of peak position to lower energy side, are ascribed to the onset of an exciton-plasma Mott-transition in the photoexcited semiconductor.     

Simulating cyclotron-Bloch dynamics of a charged particle in a 2D lattice by means of cold atoms in driven quasi-1D optical lattices

Quantum dynamics of a charged particle in a two-dimensional (2D) lattice subject to magnetic and electric fields is a rather complicated interplay between cyclotron oscillations (the case of vanishing electric field) and Bloch oscillations (zero magnetic field), details of which has not yet been completely understood. In the present work we suggest to study this problem by using cold atoms in optical lattices. We introduce a one-dimensional (1D) model which can be easily realized in laboratory experiments with quasi-1D optical lattices and show that this model captures many features of the cyclotron-Bloch dynamics of the quantum particle in 2D square lattices.     

Insulator-semimetallic transition in quasi-1D charged impurity-infected armchair boron-nitride nanoribbons

We address control of electronic phase transition in charged impurity-infected armchair-edged boron-nitride nanoribbons (ABNNRs) with the local variation of Fermi energy. In particular, the density of states of disordered ribbons produces the main features in the context of pretty simple tight-binding model and Green's functions approach. To this end, the Born approximation has been implemented to find the effect of π-band electron-impurity interactions. A modulation of the π-band depending on the impurity concentrations and scattering potentials leads to the phase transition from insulator to semimetallic. We present here a detailed physical meaning of this transition by studying the treatment of massive Dirac fermions. From our findings, it is found that the ribbon width plays a crucial role in determining the electronic phase of disordered ABNNRs. The obtained results in controllable gap engineering are useful for future experiments. Also, the observations in this study have also fueled interest in the electronic properties of other 2D materials.     

Quantum frustrations in quasi-2D antiferromagnets

An influence of localized holes on magnetic properties of the CuO₂ planes in quasi-2D antiferromagnets (La₂CuO₄, YBa₂Cu₃O_+x etc.) is studied. It is demonstrated that the hole localized on the bond connecting Cu²⁺ ions gives birth to frustration which in a wide range of parameters behaves as the two-level system with the energyEJ, whereJ is the exchange interaction of the neighbouring copper spins. As a result forTE the spin-wave energy may noticeably decrease even at a low concentration of the holesc if the parametercJ|E| is not small. When this parameter is greater than unity, the reentrant transition may occur in the system. Experimental data presently available are in a qualitative agreement with the theoretical predictions.     

Coherent potential approximation study of the Mott transition in optical lattice system with site-dependent interactions

We study the Mott transition in the half-filled Hubbard model with spatially alternating interactions by means of the coherent potential approximation. The phase boundary between metallic and insulating phases at zero temperature is derived and the nature of the Mott states is also considered. Our results are in good agreement with the ones recently obtained by the two-site dynamical mean-field theory.