A frustrated honeycomb-bilayer Heisenberg antiferromagnet: The spin-$\frac{1}{2}$ $J_{1}$--$J_{2}$--$J_{1}^{\perp}$ model

Abstract

We use the coupled cluster method to study the zero-temperature quantum phase diagram of the spin-$\frac{1}{2}$ $J_{1}$--$J_{2}$--$J_{1}^{\perp}$ model on the honeycomb bilayer lattice. In each layer we include both nearest-neighbor and frustrating next-nearest-neighbor antiferromagnetic exchange couplings, of strength $J_{1}>0$ and $J_{2} \equiv κJ_{1} > 0$, respectively. The two layers are coupled by an interlayer nearest-neighbor exchange, with coupling constant $J_{1}^{\perp} \equiv δJ_{1}>0$. We calculate directly in the infinite-lattice limit both the ground-state energy per spin and the Néel magnetic order parameter, as well as the triplet spin gap. By implementing the method to very high orders of approximation we obtain an accurate estimate for the full boundary of the Néel phase in the $κδ$ plane. For each value $δ< δ_{c}^{>}(0) \approx 1.70(5)$ we find an upper critical value $κ_{c}(δ)$, such that Néel order is present for $κ< κ_{c}(δ)$. Conversely, for each value $κ< κ_{c}(0) \approx 0.19(1)$ we find an upper critical value $δ_{c}^{>}(κ)$, such that Néel order persists for $0 < δ< δ_{c}^{>}(κ)$. Most interestingly, for values of $κ$ in the range $κ_{c}(0) < κ< κ^{>} \approx 0.215(2)$ we find a reentrant behavior such that Néel order exists only in the range $δ_{c}^{<}(κ) < δ< δ_{c}^{>}(κ)$, with $δ_{c}^{<}(κ)>0$. These latter upper and lower critical values coalesce when $κ= κ^{>}$, such that $δ_{c}^{<}(κ^{>}) = δ_{c}^{>}(κ^{>}) \approx 0.25(5)$.