Finite temperatures and flat bands: the Hubbard model on three-dimensional Lieb lattices

Abstract

We investigate some thermodynamic and magnetic properties of the Hubbard model on two three-dimensional extensions of the Lieb lattice: the perovskite Lieb lattice (PLL) and the layered Lieb lattice (LLL). Using determinant quantum Monte Carlo (DQMC) simulations alongside Hartree-Fock and cluster mean-field theory (CMFT) approaches, we analyze how flat-band degeneracy, connectivity, and lattice anisotropy influence the emergence of magnetic order. Our results show that both geometries support finite-temperature magnetic transitions, namely ferromagnetic (FM) on the PLL, and antiferromagnetic (AFM) on the LLL. Further, we have established that the critical temperature, $T_c$, as a function of the uniform on-site coupling, $U$, displays a maximum, which is smaller in the AFM case than in the FM one, despite the absence of flat bands in the LLL. We also provide numerical evidence to show that flat bands in the PLL rapidly generate magnetic moments, but a small interorbital coordination suppresses the increase of $T_c$ at large interaction strength $U/t$. By contrast, the LLL benefits from higher connectivity, favoring magnetic order even in the absence of flat bands. The possibilities of anisotropic interlayer hoppings and inhomogeneous on-site interactions were separateley explored. We have found that magnetism in the PLL is hardly affected by hopping anisotropy, since the main driving mechanism is the preserved flat band; for the LLL, by contrast, spectral weight is removed from $d$-sites, which increases $T_c$ more significantly. At mean-field level, we have obtained that setting $U=0$ on $p$ sites and $U=U_d\neq0$ on $d$ sites leads to a quantum critical point at some $U_d$; this behavior was not confirmed by our DQMC simulations.