Theory of the Kitaev model in a [111] magnetic field

Zhang, Shang-Shun; Halász, Gábor B.; Batista, Cristian D.

doi:10.1038/s41467-022-28014-3

Title: Theory of the Kitaev model in a [111] magnetic field

Journal Article · 20 January 2022 · Nature Communications

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-022-28014-3 · OSTI ID:1844835

^[1]; Halász, Gábor B. ^[2];

^[3]

Univ. of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN (United States); Univ. of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN (United States)
Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Quantum Science Center, Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
Univ. of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN (United States); Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

Recent numerical studies indicate that the antiferromagnetic Kitaev honeycomb lattice model undergoes a magnetic-field-induced quantum phase transition into a new spin-liquid phase. This intermediate-field phase has been previously characterized as a gapless spin liquid. By implementing a recently developed variational approach based on the exact fractionalized excitations of the zero-field model, we demonstrate that the field-induced spin liquid is gapped and belongs to Kitaev’s 16-fold way. Specifically, the low-field non-Abelian liquid with Chern number C = ±1 transitions into an Abelian liquid with C = ±4. The critical field and the field-dependent behaviors of key physical quantities are in good quantitative agreement with published numerical results. Furthermore, we derive an effective field theory for the field-induced critical point which readily explains the ostensibly gapless nature of the intermediate-field spin liquid.

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Research Organization:: Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Science (SC)

Grant/Contract Number:: AC05-00OR22725

OSTI ID:: 1844835

Journal Information:: Nature Communications, Journal Name: Nature Communications Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 13; ISSN 2041-1723

Publisher:: Nature Publishing GroupCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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