Nearest-neighbor Spin Correlations Research Articles

Quantum phase transitions in the alternating XY chain with three-site interactions

We investigate the quantum phase transition in the alternating XY chain with the XZY+YZX type of three-spin interactions. We present the exact solution derived by means of the Jordan–Wigner transformation and study the average magnetization, spin correlations, and von Neumann entropy to establish the phase diagram. The phase diagram consists of the ferromagnetic phases, the paramagnetic phases, and the phase with weak magnetization (WM). By examining the nearest-neighbor transverse spin correlation, we probe that in the WM phase, the spins within a supercell generate a cluster with a small total spin, but between the nearest-neighbor supercells are distributed randomly. Especially for the dimerized limit case, the spins within a supercell tend to point to opposite directions of the transverse field. In addition, we also investigate the influence of the three-site interaction, and find that the WM phase is absent as the strength of the three-site interaction increases. Our findings shed light on the complex behavior of the alternating XY chain and provide valuable insights for future studies.

Real-space spectral simulation of quantum spin models: Application to generalized Kitaev models

The proliferation of quantum fluctuations and long-range entanglement presents an outstanding challenge for the numerical simulation of interacting spin systems with exotic ground states. Here, we present a toolset of Chebyshev polynomial-based iterative methods that provides a unified framework to study the thermodynamical properties, critical behavior and dynamics of frustrated quantum spin models with controlled accuracy. Similar to previous applications of the Chebyshev spectral methods to condensed matter systems, the algorithmic complexity scales linearly with the Hilbert space dimension and the Chebyshev truncation order. Using this approach, we study two paradigmatic quantum spin models on the honeycomb lattice: the Kitaev-Heisenberg (K-H) and the Kitaev-Ising (K-I) models. We start by applying the Chebyshev toolset to compute nearest-neighbor spin correlations, specific heat and entropy of the K-H model on a 24-spin cluster. Our results are benchmarked against exact diagonalization and a popular iterative method based on thermal pure quantum states. The transitions between a variety of magnetic phases, namely ferromagnetic, Néel, zigzag and stripy antiferromagnetic and quantum spin liquid phases are obtained accurately and efficiently. We also determine the temperature dependence of the spin correlations, over more than three decades in temperature, by means of a finite temperature Chebyshev polynomial method introduced here. Finally, we report novel dynamical signatures of the quantum phase transitions in the K-I model. Our findings suggest that the efficiency, versatility and low-temperature stability of the Chebyshev framework developed here could pave the way for previously unattainable studies of quantum spin models in two dimensions.

Selection rules for ultrafast laser excitation and detection of spin correlation dynamics in a cubic antiferromagnet

Exchange interactions determine the correlations between microscopic spins in magnetic materials. Probing the dynamics of these spin correlations on ultrashort length and time scales is, however, rather challenging, since it requires simultaneously high spatial and high temporal resolution. Recent experimental demonstrations of laser-driven two-magnon modes---zone-edge excitations in antiferromagnets governed by exchange coupling---posed questions about the microscopic nature of the observed spin dynamics, the mechanism underlying its excitation, and their macroscopic manifestation enabling detection. Here, on the basis of a simple microscopic model, we derive the selection rules for cubic systems that describe the polarization of pump and probe pulses required to excite and detect dynamics of nearest-neighbor spin correlations and can be employed to isolate such dynamics from other magnetic excitations and magneto-optical effects. We show that laser-driven spin correlations contribute to optical anisotropy of the antiferromagnet even in the absence of spin-orbit coupling. In addition, we highlight the role of subleading anisotropy in the spin system and demonstrate that the dynamics of the antiferromagnetic order parameter occurs only in next-to-leading order, determined by the smallness of the magnetic anisotropy as compared to the isotropic exchange interactions in the system. We expect that our results will stimulate and support further studies of magnetic correlations on the shortest length and time scales.

Observation of the Sign Reversal of the Magnetic Correlation in a Driven-Dissipative Fermi Gas in Double Wells.

We report the observation of the sign reversal of the magnetic correlation from antiferromagnetic to ferromagnetic in a dissipative Fermi gas in double wells, utilizing the dissipation caused by on-site two-body losses in a controlled manner. We systematically measure dynamics of the nearest-neighbor spin correlation in an isolated double-well optical lattice, as well as a crossover from an isolated double-well lattice to a one-dimensional uniform lattice. In a wide range of lattice configurations over an isolated double-well lattice, we observe a ferromagnetic spin correlation, which is consistent with a Dicke type of correlation expected in the long-time limit. This work demonstrates the control of quantum magnetism in open quantum systems with dissipation.

Observation of antiferromagnetic correlations in an ultracold SU(N) Hubbard model

Mott insulators are paradigms of strongly correlated physics, giving rise to phases of matter with novel and hard-to-explain properties. Extending the typical SU(2) symmetry of Mott insulators to SU($N$) is predicted to give exotic quantum magnetism at low temperatures, but understanding the effect of strong quantum fluctuations for large $N$ remains an open challenge. In this work, we experimentally observe nearest-neighbor spin correlations in the SU(6) Hubbard model realized by ytterbium atoms in optical lattices. We study one-dimensional, two-dimensional square, and three-dimensional cubic lattice geometries. The measured SU(6) spin correlations are dramatically enhanced compared to the SU(2) correlations, due to strong Pomeranchuk cooling. We also present numerical calculations based on exact diagonalization and determinantal quantum Monte Carlo. The experimental data for a one-dimensional lattice agree with theory, without any fitting parameters. The detailed comparison between theory and experiment allows us to infer from the measured correlations a lowest temperature of $\left[{0.096 \pm 0.054 \, \rm{(theory)} \pm 0.030 \, \rm{(experiment)}}\right]/k_{\rm B}$ times the tunneling amplitude. For two- and three-dimensional lattices, experiments reach entropies below where our calculations converge, highlighting the experiments as quantum simulations. These results open the door for the study of long-sought SU($N$) quantum magnetism.

Antiferromagnetic Spin Correlation of SU(N) Fermi Gas in an Optical Superlattice.

Large-spin cold atomic systems can exhibit unique phenomena that do not appear in spin-1/2 systems. We report the observation of nearest-neighbor antiferromagnetic spin correlations of a Fermi gas with SU(N) symmetry trapped in an optical lattice. The precise control of the spin degrees of freedom provided by an optical pumping technique enables us a straightforward comparison between the cases of SU(2) and SU(4). Our important finding is that the antiferromagnetic correlation is enhanced for the SU(4)-spin system compared with SU(2) as a consequence of a Pomeranchuk cooling effect. This work is an important step towards the realization of novel SU(N>2) quantum magnetism.

Numerically exploring the 1D-2D dimensional crossover on spin dynamics in the doped Hubbard model

Using determinant quantum Monte Carlo (DQMC) simulations, we systematically study the doping dependence of the crossover from one to two dimensions and its impact on the magnetic properties of the Hubbard model. A square lattice of chains is used, in which the dimensionality can be tuned by varying the interchain coupling $t_\perp$. The dynamical spin structure factor and static quantities, such as the static spin susceptibility and nearest-neighbor spin correlation function, are characterized in the one- and two-dimensional limits as a benchmark. When the dimensionality is tuned between these limits, the magnetic properties, while evolving smoothly from one to two dimensions, drastically change regardless of the doping level. This suggests that the spin excitations in the two-dimensional Hubbard model, even in the heavily doped case, cannot be explained using the spinon picture known from one dimension. The DQMC calculations are complemented by cluster perturbation theory studies to form a more complete picture of how the crossover occurs as a function of doping and how doped holes impact magnetic order.

Numerical results on the short-range spin correlation functions in the ground state of the two-dimensional Hubbard model

Optical lattice experiments with ultracold fermion atoms and quantum gas microscopy have recently realized direct measurements of magnetic correlations at the site-resolved level. We calculate the short-range spin-correlation functions in the ground state of the two-dimensional repulsive Hubbard model with the auxiliary-field quantum Monte Carlo (AFQMC) method. The results are numerically exact at half filling where the fermion sign problem is absent. Away from half filling, we employ the constrained path AFQMC approach to eliminate the exponential computational scaling from the sign problem. The constraint employs unrestricted Hartree-Fock trial wave functions with an effective interaction strength $U$, which is optimized self-consistently within AFQMC. Large supercells are studied, with twist averaged boundary conditions as needed, to reach the thermodynamic limit. We find that the nearest-neighbor spin correlation always increases with the interaction strength $U$, contrary to the finite-temperature behavior where a maximum is reached at a finite $U$ value. We also observe a change of sign in the next-nearest-neighbor spin correlation with increasing density, which is a consequence of the buildup of the long-range antiferromagnetic correlation. We expect the results presented in this paper to serve as a benchmark as lower temperatures are reached in ultracold atom experiments.

Ultra-fast photo-carrier relaxation in Mott insulators with short-range spin correlations.

Ultra-fast spectroscopy can reveal the interplay of charges with low energy degrees of freedom, which underlies the rich physics of correlated materials. As a potential glue for superconductivity, spin fluctuations in Mott insulators are of particular interest. A theoretical description of the coupled spin and charge degrees of freedom is challenging, because magnetic order is often only short-lived and short-ranged. In this work we theoretically investigate how the spin-charge interactions influence the relaxation of a two-dimensional Mott-Hubbard insulator after photo-excitation. We use a nonequilibrium variant of the dynamical cluster approximation, which, in contrast to single-site dynamical mean-field theory, captures the effect of short-range correlations. The relaxation time is found to scale with the strength of the nearest-neighbor spin correlations, and can be 10–20 fs in the cuprates. Increasing the temperature or excitation density decreases the spin correlations and thus implies longer relaxation times. This may help to distinguish the effect of spin-fluctuations on the charge relaxation from the influence of other bosonic modes in the solid.

Thermal fractionalization of quantum spins in a Kitaev model: Temperature-linear specific heat and coherent transport of Majorana fermions

Finite-temperature ($T$) properties of a Kitaev model defined on a honeycomb lattice are investigated by a quantum Monte Carlo simulation, from the viewpoint of fractionalization of quantum $S=1/2$ spins into two types of Majorana fermions, itinerant and localized. In this system, the entropy is released successively at two well-separated $T$ scales, as a clear indication of the thermal fractionalization. We show that the high-$T$ crossover, which is driven by itinerant Majorana fermions, is closely related with the development of nearest-neighbor spin correlations. On the other hand, the low-$T$ crossover originates in thermal fluctuations of fluxes composed of localized Majorana fermions, by which the spectrum of itinerant Majorana fermions is significantly disturbed. As a consequence, in the intermediate-$T$ range between the two crossovers, the system exhibits $T$-linear behavior in the specific heat and coherent transport of Majorana fermions, which are unexpected for the Dirac semimetallic spectrum in the low-$T$ limit. We also show that the flux fluctuations tend to open an energy gap in the Majorana spectrum near the gapless-gapped phase boundary. Our results indicate that the fractionalization is experimentally observable in the specific heat, spin correlations, and transport properties.

Temporal decay of Néel order in the one-dimensional Fermi-Hubbard model

Motivated by recent experiments with ultracold quantum gases in optical lattices we study the decay of the staggered moment in the one-dimensional Fermi-Hubbard model starting from a perfect N\'eel state using exact diagonalization and the infinite-system-size time-evolving-block-decimation method. This extends previous work in which the same problem has been addressed for pure spin Hamiltonians. As a main result, we show that the relaxation dynamics of the double occupancy and of the staggered moment are different. The former is controlled by the nearest-neighbor tunneling rate while the latter is much slower and strongly dependent on the interaction strength, indicating that spin excitations are important. This difference in characteristic energy scales for the fast charge dynamics and the much slower spin dynamics is also reflected in the real-time evolution of nearest-neighbor density and spin correlations. A very interesting time dependence emerges in the von Neumann entropy, which at short times increases linearly with a slope proportional to the tunneling matrix element while the long-time growth of entanglement is controlled by spin excitations. Our predictions for the different relaxation dynamics of the staggered moment and the double occupancy should be observable in state-of-the-art optical lattice experiments. We further compare time averages of the double occupancy to the expectation values in both the canonical and diagonal ensembles, which quantitatively disagree with each other on finite systems. We relate the question of thermalization to the eigenstate thermalization hypothesis.

COM(3p) Solution of the 2D Hubbard Model: Momentum-Resolved Quantities

Recently, within the framework of the Composite Operator Method, it has been proposed a three-pole solution for the two-dimensional Hubbard model [Eur. Phys. J. B 87, 45 (2014)], which is still considered one of the best candidate model to microscopically describe high-$T_{c}$ cuprate superconductors. The operatorial basis comprise the two Hubbard operators (complete fermionic local basis) and the electronic operator dressed by the nearest-neighbor spin fluctuations. The effectiveness of the approximate solution has been proved through a positive comparison with different numerical methods for various quantities. In this article, after recollecting the main analytical expressions defining the solution and the behavior of basic local quantities (double occupancy and chemical potential) and of the quasi-particle energy dispersions, we resolve and analyze the momentum components of relevant quantities: filling (i.e. the momentum distribution function), double occupancy and nearest-neighbor spin correlation function. The analysis is extended to COM(2p) solutions that will be used as primary reference. Thanks to this, the role played by the third field, with respect to the two Hubbard ones, in determining the behavior of many relevant quantities and in allowing the extremely good comparison with numerical results is better understood giving a guideline to further improve and, possibly, optimize the application of the COM to the Hubbard model.

Equation of state of the fermionic two-dimensional Hubbard model

We present results for the equation of state of the two-dimensional Hubbard model on an isotropic square lattice as obtained from a controlled and numerically exact large-cluster dynamical mean field simulation. Our results are obtained for large but finite systems and are extrapolated to infinite system size using a known finite-size scaling relation, and are supplemented by reliable error bars accounting for all sources of errors. We establish the importance of examining the decay of spatial spin correlations to determine whether a sufficiently large cluster has been used and with this in mind we present the energy, entropy, double occupancy, and nearest-neighbor spin correlations extrapolated to the thermodynamic limit. We discuss the implications of these calculations on pseudogap physics of the 2D Hubbard model away from half filling, where we find a strong behavioral shift in energy below a temperature ${T}^{*}$ which becomes more pronounced for larger clusters. Finally, we provide reference calculations and tables for the equation of state for values of doping away from half filling which are of interest to cold-atom experiments.

Néel temperature and thermodynamics of the half-filled three-dimensional Hubbard model by diagrammatic determinant Monte Carlo

We study the thermodynamics of the three-dimensional Hubbard model at half filling on approach to the N\'eel transition by means of large-scale unbiased diagrammatic determinant Monte Carlo simulations. We obtain the transition temperature in the strongly correlated regime, as well as the temperature dependence of the energy, entropy, double occupancy, and nearest-neighbor spin correlation function. Our results improve the accuracy of previous unbiased studies and present accurate benchmarks in the ongoing effort to realize the antiferromagnetic state of matter with ultracold atoms in optical lattices.

Universality class of quantum criticality in the two-dimensional Hubbard model at intermediate temperatures (t2/U≪T≪t)

We show that the dilute Fermi gas quantum critical universality class quantitatively describes the Mott/metal crossover of the two-dimensional Hubbard model for temperatures somewhat less than (roughly half) the tunneling but much greater than (roughly twice) the superexchange energy. We calculate the observables expected to be universal near the transition --- density and compressibility --- with numerically exact determinantal quantum Monte Carlo. We find they are universal functions of the chemical potential. Despite arising from the strongly correlated regime of the Hubbard model, these functions are given by the weakly interacting, dilute Fermi gas model. These observables and their derivatives are the only expected universal static observables of this universality class, which we also confirm by verifying there is no scaling collapse of the kinetic energy, fraction of doubly occupied sites, and nearest neighbor spin correlations. Our work resolves the universality class of the intermediate temperature Mott/metal crossover, which had alternatively been proposed to be described by more exotic theories. However, in the presence of a Zeeman magnetic field, we find that interplay of spin with itinerant charge can lead to physics beyond the dilute Fermi gas universality class.

Short-Range Correlations and Cooling of Ultracold Fermions in the Honeycomb Lattice

We use determinantal quantum MonteCarlo simulations and numerical linked-cluster expansions to study thermodynamic properties and short-range spin correlations of fermions in the honeycomb lattice. We find that, at half filling and finite temperatures, nearest-neighbor spin correlations can be stronger in this lattice than in the square lattice, even in regimes where the ground state in the former is a semimetal or a spin liquid. The honeycomb lattice also exhibits a more pronounced anomalous region in the double occupancy that leads to stronger adiabatic cooling than in the square lattice. We discuss the implications of these findings for optical lattice experiments.

Excitations and spin correlations near the interface of two three-dimensional Heisenberg antiferromagnets

Magnetic excitations and spin correlations near the interface of two spin-12 Heisenberg antiferromagnets are considered using the spin-wave approximation. When the interaction between boundary spins differs essentially from exchange constants inside the antiferromagnets, quasi-two-dimensional spin waves appear in the near-boundary region. They eject bulk magnons from this region, thereby dividing the antiferromagnets into areas with different magnetic excitations. The decreased dimensionality of the near-boundary modes leads to amplified nearest-neighbor spin correlations in the interface area.

Universal probes for antiferromagnetic correlations and entropy in cold fermions on optical lattices

We determine antiferromagnetic (AF) signatures in the half-filled Hubbard model at strong coupling on a cubic lattice and in lower dimensions. Upon cooling, the transition from the charge-excitation regime to the AF Heisenberg regime is signaled by a universal minimum of the double occupancy at entropy $s\ensuremath{\equiv}S/(N{k}_{\text{B}})={s}^{*}\ensuremath{\approx}\mathrm{ln}(2)$ per particle and a linear increase of the next-nearest-neighbor (NNN) spin correlation function for $s<{s}^{*}$. This crossover, driven by a gain in kinetic exchange energy, appears as the essential AF physics relevant for current cold-atom experiments. The onset of long-range AF order (at low $s$ on cubic lattices) is hardly visible in nearest-neighbor spin correlations versus $s$, but could be detected in spin correlations at or beyond NNN distances.

Accessing the Mott Regime in 2D Optical Lattices with Strongly Interacting Fermions

We use numerical linked-cluster expansions to study finite-temperature properties of strongly interacting fermions in two-dimensional optical lattices, governed by the Hubbard model. We show the double occupancy and entropy for the infinite homogeneous system at temperatures significantly lower than those obtained by other exact methods at strong interactions. Employing a local density approximation, and using the high-precision results for the entropy, we study the density and nearest-neighbor spin correlation profiles of lattice fermions trapped in a harmonic potential during adiabatic processes. Starting with a trap that has a substantial band-insulator region at high temperatures, we show how one can access the Mott region at low temperatures by flattening the trapping potential.

Frustration signatures in the anisotropic model of a nine-spin s = 3/2 ring with bond defect

Effects of magnetic frustration in the model of nine-membered antiferromagnetic s = 3/2 molecular spin ring are investigated. We use a Heisenberg spin model with nearest-neighbor interactions, single-ion anisotropy and with tunable bond defect leading to continuously varying topology: from closed to open ring. In order to identify a frustrated phase we calculate the full energy spectrum of the model and a number of thermodynamic quantities at low temperature. The calculations are performed by means of numerically exact methods: quantum transfer matrix and exact diagonalization. It is shown that total and local magnetizations, nearest-neighbor spin correlations and spin fluctuations can serve as consistent frustration signatures. Magnetizations and spin-spin correlations are reduced in the frustrated phase whereas fluctuations and correlations of fluctuations increase. The ground state in a frustrated phase is a m = 1/2 doublet and in the non-frustrated phase a m = 3/2 doublet. In the system studied bipartiteness is not opposite to frustration as there are regions in the parameter space for which the system is neither bipartite nor frustrated.