anti-Pfaffian States Research Articles

Fingerprints of Anti-Pfaffian Topological Order in Quantum Point Contact Transport.

Despite recent experimental developments, the topological order of the fractional quantum Hall state at filling ν=5/2 remains an outstanding question. We study conductance and shot noise in a quantum point contact device in the charge-equilibrated regime and show that, among Pfaffian, particle-hole Praffian, and anti-Pfaffian (aPf) candidate states, the hole-conjugate aPf state is unique in that it can produce a conductance plateau at G=(7/3)e^{2}/h by two fundamentally distinct mechanisms. We demonstrate that these mechanisms can be distinguished by shot noise measurements on the plateaus. We also determine distinct features of the conductance of the aPf state in the coherent regime. Our results can be used to experimentally single out the aPf order.

Second Landau level projection of antiholomorphic Pfaffian wave functions

We propose a new state described by the second Landau level (SLL) projection of a generalized Moore-Read Pfaffian wavefunction with an antiholomorphic pairing component. Unlike the PH-Pfaffian state which is described by the lowest Landau level (LLL) projection of the same antiholomorphic Pfaffian wavefunction, we find the proposed state, which we call the SLL PH-Pfaffian, represents a gapped, incompressible phase, and provides an excellent description for the exact ground state of finite-size SLL Coulomb-interacting electrons over a range of the short distance interaction strength. We also find the SLL PH-Pfaffian, when mapped to the LLL, has a very large overlap and the same low-energy orbital entanglement spectrum structures with the anti-Pfaffian state. We discuss possible interpretations of our results on the nature of the topological order of both states.

Possible restoration of particle-hole symmetry in the 5/2-quantized Hall state at small magnetic field

Motivated by the experimental observation of a quantized 5/2 thermal conductance at filling $\nu=5/2$, a result incompatible with both the Pfaffian and the Antipfaffian states, we have pushed the expansion of the effective Hamiltonian of the $5/2$ quantized Hall state to third-order in the parameter $\kappa=E_c/\hbar \omega_c \propto 1/\sqrt{B}$ controlling the Landau level mixing , where $E_c$ is the Coulomb energy and $\omega_c$ the cyclotron frequency. Exact diagonalizations of this effective Hamiltonian show that the difference in overlap with the Pfaffian and the AntiPfaffian induced at second-order is reduced by third-order corrections and disappears around $\kappa=0.4$, suggesting that these states are much closer in energy at smaller magnetic field than previously anticipated. Furthermore, we show that in this range of $\kappa$ the finite-size spectrum is typical of a quantum phase transition, with a strong reduction of the energy gap and with level crossings between excited states. These results point to the possibility of a quantum phase transition at smaller magnetic field into a phase with an emergent particle-hole symmetry that would explain the measured $5/2$ thermal conductance of the $5/2$ quantized Hall state.

Phase transitions and topological properties of the 52 quantum Hall states with strong Landau-level mixing

We numerically study a $\frac{5}{2}$ fractional quantum Hall system with even number of electrons using the exact diagonalization where both the strong Landau-level (LL) mixing and a finite width of the quantum well have been considered and adapted into a screened Coulomb interaction. With the principal component analysis, we are able to recognize a compressible-incompressible phase transition in the parameter space made of the magnetic field and the quantum well width by the competition between the first two leading components of the ground-state wave functions, which is consistent with the low-lying spectral feature and previous works in the odd-electron system. In addition, the presence of the subdominant third component suggests an incompressible transition occurring as the LL mixing strength grows into a certain parameter region associated with the ZnO experiments. We further investigate the strongly LL-mixed phase in this emerging region with the Hall viscosity, wave function overlaps, and the entanglement spectra. Results show it can be well described as a particle-hole symmetrized Pfaffian state with the dual topological properties of the Pfaffian and the anti-Pfaffian states.

Dynamics of quantum Hall interfaces

A quantum Hall (QH) interface is different from an ordinary QH edge, as the latter has its location determined by the confining potential, while the former can be unpinned and behave like a free string. In this paper, we demonstrate this difference by studying three different interfaces formed by (i) the Laughlin state and the vacuum, (ii) the Pfaffian state and the vacuum, and (iii) the Pfaffian and the anti-Pfaffian states. We find that string-like interfaces propagating freely in the QH system lead to very different dynamical properties from edges. This qualitative difference gives rise to fascinating new physics and suggests a new direction in future research on QH physics. We also discuss briefly possible analogies between QH interfaces and concepts in string theory.

Stability of the particle-hole Pfaffian state and the 52 -fractional quantum Hall effect

We present a method for the exact construction of the fully particle-hole symmetric PH-Pfaffian ground state and its charged excitations on a sphere. We adopt the Moore-Read state, but with a nonholomorphic pairing component as in previous studies, and project it to the lowest Landau level. We study the energetics as well as other properties of these states and find that in a pure system interacting with the Coulomb forces the PH-Pfaffian cannot compete with either the Moore-Read state or its particle-hole conjugate, the anti-Pfaffian state, as an explanation for the 5/2-effect.

Non-Abelian fermionization and the landscape of quantum Hall phases

The recent proposal of non-Abelian boson-fermion dualities in 2+1 dimensions, which morally relate $U(k)_N$ to $SU(N)_{-k}$ Chern-Simons-matter theories, presents a new platform for exploring the landscape of non-Abelian quantum Hall states accessible from theories of Abelian composite particles. Here we focus on dualities relating theories of Abelian quantum Hall states of bosons or fermions to theories of non-Abelian "composite fermions" partially filling Landau levels. We show that these dualities predict special filling fractions where both Abelian and non-Abelian composite fermion theories appear capable of hosting distinct topologically ordered ground states, one Abelian and the other a non-Abelian, $U(k)_2$ Blok-Wen state. Rather than being in conflict with the duality, we argue that these results indicate unexpected dynamics in which the infrared and lowest Landau level limits fail to commute across the duality. In such a scenario, the non-Abelian topological order can be destabilized in favor of the Abelian ground state, suggesting the presence of a phase transition between the Abelian and non-Abelian states that is likely to be first order. We also generalize these constructions to other non-Abelian fermion-fermion dualities, in the process obtaining new derivations of a variety of paired composite fermion phases using duality, including the anti-Pfaffian state. Finally, we describe how, in multilayer constructions, excitonic pairing of the composite fermions across $N$ layers can also generate the family of Blok-Wen states with $U(k)_2$ topological order.

Effective field theory for fractional quantum Hall systems nearν=5/2

We propose an effective field theory (EFT) of fractional quantum Hall systems near the filling fraction $\nu=5/2$ that flows to pertinent IR candidate phases, including non-abelian Pfaffian, anti-Pfaffian, and particle-hole Pfaffian states (Pf, APf, and PHPf). Our EFT has a 2+1$d$ O(2)$_{2,L}$ Chern-Simons gauge theory coupled to four Majorana fermions by a discrete charge conjugation gauge field, with Gross-Neveu-Yukawa-Higgs terms. Including deformations via a Higgs condensate and fermion mass terms, we can map out a phase diagram with tunable parameters, reproducing the prediction of the recently-proposed percolation picture and its gapless topological quantum phase transitions. Our EFT captures known features of both gapless and gapped sectors of time-reversal-breaking domain walls between Pf and APf phases. Moreover, we find that Pf$\mid$APf domain walls have higher tension than domain walls in the PHPf phase. Then the former, if formed, may transition to the energetically-favored PHPf domain walls; this could, in turn, help further induce a bulk transition to PHPf.

Partial equilibration of anti-Pfaffian edge modes at ν=5/2

The thermal Hall conductance $K$ of the fractional quantum Hall state at filling fraction $\nu=5/2$ has recently been measured to be $K=2.5 \pi^2k_B^2T/3h$ [M. Banerjee et al., Nature ${\bf 559}$, 205 (2018)]. The half-integer value of this result (in units of $\pi^2k_B^2T/3h$) provides strong evidence for the presence of a Majorana edge mode and a corresponding quantum Hall state hosting quasiparticles with non-Abelian statistics. Whether this measurement points to the realization of the PH-Pfaffian or the anti-Pfaffian state has been the subject of debate. Here we consider the implications of this measurement for anti-Pfaffian edge-state transport. We show that in the limit of a strong Coulomb interaction and an approximate spin degeneracy in the lowest Landau level, the anti-Pfaffian state admits low-temperature edge phases that are consistent with the Hall conductance measurements. These edge phases can exhibit fully-equilibrated electrical transport coexisting with partially-equilibrated heat transport over a range of temperatures. Through a study of the kinetic equations describing low-temperature electrical and heat transport of these edge states, we determine regimes of parameter space, controlling the interactions between the different edge modes, that agree with experiment.

Topological Interface between Pfaffian and Anti-Pfaffian Order in ν=5/2 Quantum Hall Effect.

A recent thermal Hall experiment triggered renewed interest in the problem of ν=5/2 quantum Hall effect, which motivated novel interpretations based on the formation of mesoscopic puddles made of Pfaffian and anti-Pfaffian topological orders. Here, we study an interface between the Pfaffian and anti-Pfaffian states, which may play crucial roles in thermal transport, by means of state-of-the-art, density-matrix renormalization group simulations. We demonstrate that an intrinsic electric dipole moment emerges at the interface, similar to the "p-n" junction sandwiched between N-type and P-type semiconductor. Importantly, we elucidate the topological origin of this dipole moment, whose formation is to counterbalance the mismatch of guiding-center Hall viscosity of bulk Pfaffian and anti-Pfaffian states. In addition, these results imply that the formation of a dipole moment could be helpful to stabilize the puddles made of Pfaffian and anti-Pfaffian states in experimental conditions.

Partial Equilibration of the Anti-Pfaffian Edge due to Majorana Disorder.

We consider electrical and thermal equilibration of the edge modes of the anti-Pfaffian quantum Hall state at ν=5/2 due to tunneling of the Majorana edge mode to trapped Majorana zero modes in the bulk. Such tunneling breaks translational invariance and allows scattering between Majorana and other edge modes in such a way that there is a parametric difference between the length scales for equilibration of charge and heat transport between integer and Bose mode, on the one hand, and for thermal equilibration of the Majorana edge mode, on the other hand. We discuss a parameter regime in which this mechanism could explain the recent observation of quantized heat transport [M. Banerjee etal., Nature (London) 559, 205 (2018)NATUAS0028-083610.1038/s41586-018-0184-1].

Specific heat and pairing of Dirac composite fermions in the half-filled Landau level

A recent proposal argues that an alternate description of the half-filled Landau level is a theory of massless Dirac fermions. We examine the possibility of pairing of these Dirac fermions by numerically solving the coupled Eliashberg equations unlike our previous calculation (Wang and Chakravarty, 2016). In addition, vertex corrections are calculated to be zero from the Ward identity. We find that pairing is possible in non-zero angular momentum channels; only differences are minor numerical shifts. As before, the pairing leads to the gapped Pfaffian and anti-Pfaffian states. However, in our approximation scheme, pairing is not possible in the putative particle–hole symmetric state for ℓ=0 angular momentum. The specific heat at low temperatures of a system of massless Dirac fermions interacting with a transverse gauge field, expected to be relevant for the half-filled Landau level, is calculated. Using the Luttinger formula, it is found to be ∝TlnT in the leading low temperature limit, due to the exchange of transverse gauge bosons. The result agrees with the corresponding one in the nonrelativistic composite fermion theory of Halperin, Lee and Read of the half-filled Landau level.

Real-time Ramsey interferometry in fractional quantum Hall states

We study the time-dependent dynamical phase of fractional quasiparticles in quantum Hall states using Ramsey interferometry. A Ramsey two-pulse voltage modulation generates an interference term in the current noise of a quantum point contact oscillating with the dynamical phase. We show that the interference pattern probes the Green's function of the fractional quasi-particles in the time domain and reveals the fractional charge. We address both the case of a point-like tunnel junction and the case of momentum-resolved tunneling which also provides information on the speed of those quasiparticles propagating along the edge. For the 5/2 fractional quantum Hall case, the Ramsey signal can differentiate between the Pfaffian and anti-Pfaffian states.

Quantum Hall hierarchy from coupled wires

The coupled-wire construction provides a useful way to obtain microscopic Hamiltonians for various two-dimensional topological phases, among which fractional quantum Hall states are paradigmatic examples. Using the recently introduced flux attachment and vortex duality transformations for coupled wires, we show that this construction is remarkably versatile to encapsulate phenomenologies of hierarchical quantum Hall states: the Jain-type hierarchy states of composite fermions filling Landau levels and the Haldane-Halperin hierarchy states of quasiparticle condensation. The particle-hole conjugate transformation for coupled-wire models is also given as a special case of the hierarchy construction. We also propose coupled-wire models for the composite Fermi liquid, which turn out to be compatible with a sort of the particle-hole symmetry implemented in a nonlocal way at $\nu=1/2$. Furthermore, our approach shows explicitly the connection between the Moore-Read Pfaffian state and a chiral $p$-wave pairing of the composite fermions. This composite fermion picture is also generalized to a family of the Pfaffian state, including the anti-Pfaffian state and Bonderson-Slingerland hierarchy states.

Parton construction of a wave function in the anti-Pfaffian phase

In this work we propose a parton state as a candidate state to describe the fractional quantum Hall effect in the half-filled second Landau level. The wave function for this parton state is $\mathcal{P}_{\rm LLL} \Phi_{1}^3[\Phi_{2}^{*}]^{2}\sim\Psi^{2}_{2/3}/\Phi_{1}$ and in the spherical geometry it occurs at the same flux as the anti-Pfaffian state. This state has a good overlap with the anti-Pfaffian state and with the ground state obtained by exact diagonalization, using the second Landau level Coulomb interaction pseudopotentials for an ordinary semiconductor such as GaAs. By calculating the entanglement spectrum we show that this state lies in the same phase as the anti-Pfaffian state. A major advantage of this parton state is that its wave function can be evaluated for large systems, which makes it amenable to variational calculations. In the appendix of this work we have numerically assessed the validity of another candidate state at filling factor $\nu=5/2$, namely the particle-hole-symmetric Pfaffian (PH-Pfaffian) state. We find that the proposed candidate wave function for the PH-Pfaffian state is particle-hole symmetric to a high degree but it does not appear to arise as the ground state of any simple Hamiltonian with two-body interactions.

Topological order from disorder and the quantized Hall thermal metal: Possible applications to the ν=5/2 state

Although numerical studies modeling the quantum hall effect at filling fraction $5/2$ predict either the Pfaffian (Pf) or its particle hole conjugate, the anti-Pfaffian (aPf) state, recent experiments appear to favor a quantized thermal hall conductivity with quantum number $K=5/2$ , rather than the value $K=7/2$ or $K=3/2$ expected for the Pf or aPF state, respectively. While a particle hole symmetric topological order (the PH-Pfaffian) would be consistent with the experiments, this state is believed to be energetically unfavorable in a homogenous system. Here we study the effects of disorder that are assumed to locally nucleate domains of Pf and aPf. When the disorder is relatively weak and the size of domains is relatively large, we find that when the electrical Hall conductance is on the quantized plateau with $\sigma_{xy} = (5/2)(e^2/h)$, the value of $K$ can be only 7/2 or 3/2, with a possible first-order-like transition between them as the magnetic field is varied. However, for sufficiently strong disorder an intermediate state might appear, which we analyze within a network model of the domain walls. Predominantly, we find a thermal metal phase, where $K$ varies continuously and the longitudinal thermal conductivity is non-zero, while the electrical Hall conductivity remains quantized at $(5/2)e^2/h$. However, in a restricted parameter range we find a thermal insulator with $K=5/2$, a disorder stabilized phase which is adiabatically connected to the PH-Pfaffian. We discuss a possible scenario to rationalize these special values of parameters.

Theory of the disordered ν=52 quantum thermal Hall state: Emergent symmetry and phase diagram

Fractional quantum Hall (FQH) system at Landau level filling fraction $\nu=5/2$ has long been suggested to be non-Abelian, either Pfaffian (Pf) or antiPfaffian (APf) states by numerical studies, both with quantized Hall conductance $\sigma_{xy}=5e^2/2h$. Thermal Hall conductances of the Pf and APf states are quantized at $\kappa_{xy}=7/2$ and $\kappa_{xy}=3/2$ respectively in a proper unit. However, a recent experiment shows the thermal Hall conductance of $\nu=5/2$ FQH state is $\kappa_{xy}=5/2$. It has been speculated that the system contains random Pf and APf domains driven by disorders, and the neutral chiral Majorana modes on the domain walls may undergo a percolation transition to a $\kappa_{xy}=5/2$ phase. In this work, we do perturbative and non-perturbative analyses on the domain walls between Pf and APf. We show the domain wall theory possesses an emergent SO(4) symmetry at energy scales below a threshold $\Lambda_1$, which is lowered to an emergent U(1)$\times$U(1) symmetry at energy scales between $\Lambda_1$ and a higher value $\Lambda_2$, and is finally lowered to the composite fermion parity symmetry $\mathbb{Z}_2^F$ above $\Lambda_2$. Based on the emergent symmetries, we propose a phase diagram of the disordered $\nu=5/2$ FQH system, and show that a $\kappa_{xy}=5/2$ phase arises at disorder energy scales $\Lambda>\Lambda_1$. Furthermore, we show the gapped double-semion sector of $N_D$ compact domain walls contributes non-local topological degeneracy $2^{N_D-1}$, causing a low-temperature peak in the heat capacity. We implement a non-perturbative method to bootstrap generic topological 1+1D domain walls (2-surface defects) applicable to any 2+1D non-Abelian topological order. We identify potentially relevant spin TQFTs for various $\nu = 5/2$ FQH states in terms of fermionic version of U(1)$_{\pm 8}$ Chern-Simons theory $\times \mathbb{Z}_8$-class TQFTs.

Pfaffian state in an electron gas with small Landau level gaps

Landau level mixing plays an important role in the even denominator fractional quantum Hall states. In ZnO the Landau level gap is essentially an order of magnitude smaller than that in a GaAs quantum well. We introduce the screened Coulomb interaction in a single Landau level to deal with that situation. Here we study the incompressibility and the overlap of the ground state and the Pfaffian (or anti-Pfaffian) state at filling factors $\frac{5}{2}$ and $\frac{7}{2}$ with a general screened Coulomb interaction. For small Landau level gaps, the overlap is strongly system size dependent and the screening can stabilize the incompressibility of the ground state with particle-hole symmetry which suggests a newly proposed particle-hole symmetry Pfaffian ground state. When the ratio of Coulomb interaction to the Landau level gap $\ensuremath{\kappa}$ varies, we find a possible topological phase transition in the range $2<\ensuremath{\kappa}<3$, which was actually observed in an experiment. We then study how the width of quantum well combined with screening influences the system.

Landau Level Mixing and the Ground State of the ν=5/2 Quantum Hall Effect.

Inter-Landau-level transitions break particle hole symmetry and will choose either the Pfaffian or the anti-Pfaffian state as the absolute ground state at 5/2 filling of the fractional quantum Hall effect. An approach based on truncating the Hilbert space has favored the anti-Pfaffian. A second approach based on an effective Hamiltonian produced the Pfaffian. In this Letter, perturbation theory is applied to finite sizes without bias to any specific pseudopotential component. This method also singles out the anti-Pfaffian. A critical piece of the effective Hamiltonian, which was absent in previous studies, reverts the ground state at 5/2 to the anti-Pfaffian.

Competing ν = 5/2 fractional quantum Hall states in confined geometry

Some theories predict that the filling factor 5/2 fractional quantum Hall state can exhibit non-Abelian statistics, which makes it a candidate for fault-tolerant topological quantum computation. Although the non-Abelian Pfaffian state and its particle-hole conjugate, the anti-Pfaffian state, are the most plausible wave functions for the 5/2 state, there are a number of alternatives with either Abelian or non-Abelian statistics. Recent experiments suggest that the tunneling exponents are more consistent with an Abelian state rather than a non-Abelian state. Here, we present edge-current-tunneling experiments in geometrically confined quantum point contacts, which indicate that Abelian and non-Abelian states compete at filling factor 5/2. Our results are consistent with a transition from an Abelian state to a non-Abelian state in a single quantum point contact when the confinement is tuned. Our observation suggests that there is an intrinsic non-Abelian 5/2 ground state but that the appropriate confinement is necessary to maintain it. This observation is important not only for understanding the physics of the 5/2 state but also for the design of future topological quantum computation devices.