Searcharxiv⌕ Search

arXiv subjects

Ipsita Mandal

Publications and source records attributed to Ipsita Mandal.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

Valley-polarized nematic order in twisted moiré systems: In-plane orbital magnetism and non-Fermi liquid to Fermi liquid crossover

The interplay between strong correlations and non-trivial topology in twisted moiré systems can give rise to a rich landscape of ordered states that intertwine the spin, valley, and charge degrees of freedom. In this paper, we investigate the properties of a system that displays long-range valley-polarized nematic order. Besides breaking the threefold rotational symmetry of the triangular moiré superlattice, this type of order also breaks twofold rotational and time-reversal symmetries, which leads to interesting properties. First, we develop a phenomenological model to describe the onset of this ordered state in twisted moiré systems and to explore its signatures in their thermodynamic and electronic properties. Its main manifestation is that it triggers the emergence of in-plane orbital magnetic moments oriented along high-symmetry lattice directions. We also investigate the properties of the valley-polarized nematic state at zero temperature. Due to the existence of a dangerously irrelevant coupling $λ$ in the six-state clock model that describes the putative valley-polarized nematic quantum critical point, the ordered state displays a pseudo-Goldstone mode. Using a two-patch model, we compute the fermionic self-energy to show that down to very low energies, the Yukawa-like coupling between the pseudo-Goldstone mode and the electronic degrees of freedom promotes the emergence of non-Fermi liquid behavior. Below a crossover energy scale $Ω^{*}\simλ^{3/2}$, however, Fermi liquid behavior is recovered. Finally, we discuss the applicability of these results to other non-trivial nematic states, such as the spin-polarized nematic phase.

cond-mat.str-el↗

Magneto-optical conductivity in the type-I and type-II phases of Weyl/multi-Weyl semimetals

Magneto-optical conductivity is a very widely studied transport coefficient, useful to understand and characterize the behaviour of materials under magnetic fields. Using the Kubo formula, we compute the components of the conductivity tensor $σ_{μν}$ transverse to a uniform magnetic field $\mathbf B$, for a single node of a multi-Weyl semimetal (with monopole charge $J$ equal to two or three). We also include the results for a Weyl semimetal (with $J=1$), and identify peaks in the conductivity profile which were not reported in earlier studies. In our analysis, we explore how the tilting of the Weyl/multi-Weyl cone affects $σ_{μν}$, focussing on both type-I and type-II phases. All these systems have a linear-in-momentum dispersion along the tilting axis, which is chosen to align with $\mathbf B$. In the type-II phases, open Fermi pockets appear as artifacts of the low-energy effective continuum models, which ignore higher-order momentum terms of the actual bandstructures. Hence, we supplement the linear power term with a cubic term, which closes the Fermi pockets, thus eliminating any need for an ad hoc cutoff for the momentum integrals. Our results reveal that the absorptive parts of $σ_{μν}$ display multiple peaks as functions of the frequency, whose locations are determined by an energy scale $\sim |\mathbf B|^{J/2} $.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

Transmission in pseudospin-1 and pseudospin-3/2 semimetals with linear dispersion through scalar and vector potential barriers

We investigate the tunneling of pseudospin-1 and pseudospin-3/2 quasiparticles through a barrier consisting of both electrostatic and vector potentials, existing uniformly in a finite region along the transmission axis. First, we find the tunneling coefficients, conductivities, and Fano factors in the absence of the vector potential. Then we repeat the calculations by switching on the relevant magnetic fields. The features show clear distinctions, which can be used to identify the type of semimetals, although both of them exhibit linear band-crossing points.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

Floquet scattering of quadratic band-touching semimetals through a time-periodic potential well

We consider tunneling of quasiparticles through a rectangular quantum well, subject to periodic driving. The quasiparticles are the itinerant charges in two-dimensional and three-dimensional semimetals having a quadratic band-touching (QBT) point in the Brillouin zone. In order to analyze the time-periodic Hamiltonian, we assume a non-adiabatic limit, where the Floquet theorem is applicable. By deriving the Floquet scattering matrices, we chalk out the transmission and shot noise spectra of the QBT semimetals. The spectra show Fano resonances, which we identify with the (quasi)bound states of the systems.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

Floquet transmission in Weyl/multi-Weyl and nodal-line semimetals through a time-periodic potential well

In mesoscopic physics, the application of a time-periodic drive leads to novel transport behaviour, which is absent in the static regimes. Here we consider a quantum pumping protocol, such that the quasiparticles of Weyl/multi-Weyl and nodal-line semimetals are subjected to a time-periodic rectangular potential well. The presence of an oscillating potential of frequency $ω$ creates equispaced Floquet side-bands with spacing $\hbar ω$. As a result, a Fano resonance is observed when the difference in the Fermi energy (i.e., the energy of the incident quasiparticle), and the energy of one of the (quasi)bound state levels of the well, coincides with the energy of an integer number of photons (each carrying energy quantum $\hbar ω$, equal to the side-band spacing). Using the Floquet theory and the scattering matrix approach, in the zero-temperature non-adiabatic pumping limit, we find characteristic Fano resonance patterns in the transmission coefficients, which depend on the nature of the dispersion. The inflection points in the pumped shot noise spectra also serve as a proxy for the corresponding Fano resonances. Therefore, we also numerically evaluate the pumped shot noise. Finally, we correlate the existence of the Fano resonance points to the (quasi)bound states of the well, by explicitly calculating the bound states of the static well (which are a subset of the bound states of the driven system). Since we consider semimetals with anisotropic dispersions, all the features observed depend on the orientation of the potential well. We believe that our results will serve as a guide for future experiments investigating quantum transmission in nonequilibrium settings.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

Symmetry and Higher-Order Exceptional Points

Exceptional points (EPs), at which both eigenvalues and eigenvectors coalesce, are ubiquitous and unique features of non-Hermitian systems. Second-order EPs are by far the most studied due to their abundance, requiring only the tuning of two real parameters, which is less than the three parameters needed to generically find ordinary Hermitian eigenvalue degeneracies. Higher-order EPs generically require more fine-tuning, and are thus assumed to play a much less prominent role. Here, however, we illuminate how physically relevant symmetries make higher-order EPs dramatically more abundant and conceptually richer. More saliently, third-order EPs generically require only two real tuning parameters in the presence of either a parity-time (PT) symmetry or a generalized chiral symmetry. Remarkably, we find that these different symmetries yield topologically distinct types of EPs. We illustrate our findings in simple models, and show how third-order EPs with a generic $\sim k^{1/3}$ dispersion are protected by PT symmetry, while third-order EPs with a $\sim k^{1/2}$ dispersion are protected by the chiral symmetry emerging in non-Hermitian Lieb lattice models. More generally, we identify stable, weak, and fragile aspects of symmetry-protected higher-order EPs, and tease out their concomitant phenomenology.

physics.optics↗

Boundary logarithmic corrections to the dynamical correlation functions of one-dimensional spin-1/2 chains

The asymptotic dynamical correlation functions in one-dimensional spin chains are described by power-laws. The corresponding exponents characterize different bulk and boundary critical behavior. We present novel results for the logarithmic contribution to the boundary correlations of an isotropic Heisenberg chain. The exponent of the logarithm, $λ=1$, is derived using a renormalization group technique. We confirm our analytical results by comparing with numerical quantum Monte Carlo data.

cond-mat.str-el↗

Transport in the non-Fermi liquid phase of isotropic Luttinger semimetals

Luttinger semimetals have quadratic band crossings at the Brillouin zone-center in three spatial dimensions. Coulomb interactions in a model that describes these systems stabilize a non-trivial fixed point associated with a non-Fermi liquid state, also known as the Luttinger-Abrikosov-Beneslavskii phase. We calculate the optical conductivity $σ(ω) $ and the dc conductivity $σ_{dc} (T) $ of this phase, by means of the Kubo formula and the Mori-Zwanzig memory matrix method, respectively. Interestingly, we find that $σ(ω) $, as a function of the frequency $ω$ of an applied ac electric field, is characterized by a small violation of the hyperscaling property in the clean limit, which is in marked contrast to the low-energy effective theories that possess Dirac quasiparticles in the excitation spectrum and obey hyperscaling. Furthermore, the effects of weak short-ranged disorder on the temperature-dependence of $σ_{dc} (T)$ give rise to a much stronger power-law suppression at low temperatures compared to the clean limit. Our findings demonstrate that these disordered systems are actually power-law insulators. Our theoretical results agree qualitatively with the data from recent experiments performed on Luttinger semimetal compounds like the pyrochlore iridates [ (Y$_{1-x}$Pr$_x$)$_2$Ir$_2$O$_7$ ].

cond-mat.str-el↗

Magnus Hall effect in three-dimensional topological semimetals

Magnus Hall effect (MHE) is a non-linear Hall effect requiring no external magnetic field, which can be observed when an in-built electric field couples to the Berry curvature of the bandstructure, producing a current in the transverse direction. In this paper, we explore MHE in the context of various three-dimensional semimetals, incorporating various features like tilt, anisotropy, and multi-fold degeneracy. We numerically calculate the Magnus Hall conductivity tensors and transport coefficients, within the framework of the Boltzmann transport theory. Although MHE was originally predicted for two-dimensional materials with time-reversal symmetry (TRS), we show that a finite MHE response is possible in materials without TRS. If TRS is preserved, broken inversion symmetry is needed to prevent the cancellation of the MHE contributions while summing over the Brillouin zone. The amount of tilt of the node of a semimetal greatly affects the transport coefficients. In presence of anisotropic dispersions, we find that the MHE features differ depending on the directions of measurements (as expected). To demonstrate these dependencies, our investigations include Weyl, multi-Weyl, multi-fold, and nodal-line semimetals. Our analysis is of great importance for transport measurements in experiments involving non-linear Hall effects.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

Tunneling in Fermi Systems with Quadratic Band Crossing Points

We investigate the tunneling of quasiparticles through a rectangular potential barrier of finite height and width, in 2d and 3d semimetals with band structures consisting of a quadratic band crossing point. We compute the transmission coefficient at various incident angles, and also demonstrate the behaviour of the conductivity and the Fano factor. We discuss the distinguishing signatures of these transport properties in comparison with other semimetals, as well as electrons in normal metals.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

Fate of superconductivity in three-dimensional disordered Luttinger semimetals

Superconducting instability can occur in three-dimensional quadratic band crossing semimetals only at a finite coupling strength, due to the vanishing of density of states at the quadratic band touching point. Since realistic materials are always disordered to some extent, we study the effect of short-ranged correlated disorder on this superconducting quantum critical point, using a controlled loop-expansion applying dimensional regularization. The renormalization group (RG) scheme allows us to determine the RG flows of the various interaction strengths, and shows that disorder destroys the superconducting quantum critical point. In fact, the system exhibits a runaway flow to strong disorder.

cond-mat.str-el↗

Interplay of Coulomb interactions and disorder in three dimensional quadratic band crossings without time-reversal symmetry and with unequal masses for conduction and valence bands

Coulomb interactions famously drive three dimensional quadratic band crossing semimetals into a non-Fermi liquid phase of matter. In a previous work, Phys. Rev. B 95, 205106 (2017), the effect of disorder on this non-Fermi liquid phase was investigated, assuming that the bandstructure was isotropic, assuming that the conduction and valence bands had the same band mass, and assuming that the disorder preserved exact time-reversal symmetry and statistical isotropy. It was shown that the non-Fermi liquid fixed point is unstable to disorder, and that a runaway flow to strong disorder occurs. In this work, we extend that analysis by relaxing the assumption of time-reversal symmetry and allowing the electron and hole masses to differ (but continuing to assume isotropy of the low energy bandstructure). We first incorporate time-reversal symmetry breaking disorder, and demonstrate that there do not appear any new fixed points. Moreover, while the system continues to flow to strong disorder, time-reversal-symmetry-breaking disorder grows asymptotically more slowly than time-reversal-symmetry-preserving disorder, which we therefore expect should dominate the strong-coupling phase. We then allow for unequal electron and hole masses. We show that whereas asymmetry in the two masses is irrelevant in the clean system, it is relevant in the presence of disorder, such that the 'effective masses' of the conduction and valence bands should become sharply distinct in the low-energy limit. We calculate the RG flow equations for the disordered interacting system with unequal band masses, and demonstrate that the problem exhibits a runaway flow to strong disorder. Along the runaway flow, time-reversal-symmetry-preserving disorder grows asymptotically more rapidly than both time-reversal-symmetry-breaking disorder and the Coulomb interaction.

cond-mat.str-el↗

Magnetotropic Response in Ruthenium Chloride

We consider the exchange couplings present in an effective Hamiltonian of $α$-RuCl$_3$, known as the K-$Γ$ model. This material has a honeycomb lattice, and is expected to be a representative of the Kitaev materials (which can realize the 2d Kitaev model). However, the behaviour of RuCl$_3$ shows that the exchange interactions of the material are not purely Kitaev-like, especially because it has an antiferromagnetic ordering at low temperatures and under low strengths of an externally applied magnetic field. Fitting the data obtained from the measurements of the magnetotropic coefficient (the thermodynamic coefficient associated with magnetic anisotropy), reported in Nature Physics 17, 240-244 (2020), we estimate the values of the exchange couplings of the effective Hamiltonian. The fits indicate that the Kitaev couplings are subdominant to the other exchange couplings.

cond-mat.str-el↗

Robust Marginal Fermi Liquid In Birefringent Semimetals

We investigate the interplay of Coulomb interactions and correlated disorder in pseudospin-3/2 semimetals, which exhibit birefringent spectra in the absence of interactions. Coulomb interactions drive the system to a marginal Fermi liquid, both for the two-dimensional (2d) and three-dimensional (3d) cases. Short-ranged correlated disorder in 2d, or a power-law correlated disorder 3d, has the same engineering dimension as the Coulomb term, in a renormalization group (RG) sense. In order to analyze the combined effects of these two kinds of interactions, we apply a dimensional regularization scheme and derive the RG flow equations. The results show that the marginal Fermi liquid phase is robust against disorder.

cond-mat.str-el↗

Symmetry-breaking signatures of multiple Majorana zero modes in one-dimensional spin-triplet superconductors

We study the effects of various symmetry-breaking perturbations on the experimentally measurable signatures (such as conductance and Josephson response) of quasi-one-dimensional (quasi-1D) spin-triplet superconductors. In the first part of the paper, we numerically compute the zero and nonzero temperature conductances of the quasi-1D nanowires that host multiple Majorana zero modes. Following the discussion of the case of s-wave Rashba nanowires, we shift to the main focus, i.e., multichannel spin-triplet superconductors. Applying gate voltages (which changes the symmetry of the spin-orbit coupling) as well as magnetic fields to the nanowire, tunes the system between different symmetry classes by splitting the multiple Majorana zero modes. We study how the conductance tracks the topological invariants and the spectra in all these cases. In the second part of the paper, we study the effects of the symmetry-induced spectrum-breaking on the Andreev spectra of Josephson junctions. Similar to the case of the conductance studies, we find that the spectrum shows multiple zero-energy Andreev bound states in the highly symmetric case with mirror and chiral symmetries.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

Robust quantum transport at particle-hole symmetry

We study quantum transport in disordered systems with particle-hole symmetric Hamiltonians. The particle-hole symmetry is spontaneously broken after averaging with respect to disorder, and the resulting massless mode is treated in a random-phase representation of the invariant measure of the symmetry-group. We compute the resulting fermionic functional integral of the average two-particle Green's function in a perturbation theory around the diffusive limit. The results up to two-loop order show that the corrections vanish, indicating that the diffusive quantum transport is robust. On the other hand, the diffusion coefficient depends strongly on the particle-hole symmetric Hamiltonian we choose to study. This reveals a connection between the underlying microscopic theory and the classical long-scale metallic behaviour of these systems.

cond-mat.dis-nn↗

Scaling behaviour and superconducting instability in anisotropic non-Fermi liquids

We study the scaling behaviour of the optical conductivity $(σ)$, free energy density $(F)$, and shear viscosity of the quantum critical point associated with the spin density wave phase transition for a two-dimensional metallic system with $C_2$ symmetry. A non-Fermi liquid behaviour emerges at two pairs of isolated points on the Fermi surface, due to the coupling of a bosonic order parameter to fermionic excitations at those so-called ``hot-spots''. We find that near the hot-spots, $σ$ and $F$ obey the scalings expected for such an anisotropic system, and the direction-dependent viscosity to entropy density ratio is not a universal number due to the anisotropy. Lastly, we also estimate the effect of the fermion-boson coupling at the hot-spots on superconducting instabilities.

cond-mat.str-el↗

Ultraviolet/infrared mixing in non-Fermi liquids

We study low-energy effective field theories for non-Fermi liquids with Fermi surfaces of general dimensions and co-dimensions. When the dimension of Fermi surface is greater than one, low-energy particle-hole excitations remain strongly coupled with each other across the entire Fermi surface. In this case, even the observables that are local in the momentum space (such as the Green's functions) become dependent on the size of the Fermi surface in singular ways, resulting in an ultraviolet/infrared (UV/IR) mixing. By tuning the dimension and co-dimension of the Fermi surface independently, we find perturbative non-Fermi liquid fixed points controlled by both UV/IR mixing and interactions.

cond-mat.str-el↗