arXiv subjects

Mucio A. Continentino

Publications and source records attributed to Mucio A. Continentino.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2014

Topological states in normal and superconducting $p$-wave chains

We study a two-band model of fermions in a 1d chain with an antisymmetric hybridization that breaks inversion symmetry. We find that for certain values of its parameters, the $sp$-chain maps formally into a $p$-wave superconducting chain, the archetypical 1d system exhibiting Majorana fermions. The eigenspectra, including the existence of zero energy modes in the topological phase, agree for both models. The end states too share several similarities in both models, such as the behavior of the localization length, the non-trivial topological index and robustness to disorder. However, we show by mapping the $s$- and $p$- fermions to two copies of Majoranas, that the excitations in the ends of a finite $sp$ chain are indeed conventional fermions though endowed with protected topological properties. Our results are obtained by a scattering approach in a semi-infinite chain with an edge defect treated within the $T$-matrix approximation. We augment the analytical results with exact numerical diagonalization that allow us to extend our results to arbitrary parameters and also to disordered systems.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2014

Renormalization group approach to a $p$-wave superconducting model

We present in this work an exact renormalization group (RG) treatment of a one-dimensional $p$-wave superconductor. The model proposed by Kitaev consists of a chain of spinless fermions with a $p$-wave gap. It is a paradigmatic model of great actual interest since it presents a weak pairing superconducting phase that has Majorana fermions at the ends of the chain. Those are predicted to be useful for quantum computation. The RG allows to obtain the phase diagram of the model and to study the quantum phase transition from the weak to the strong pairing phase. It yields the attractors of these phases and the critical exponents of the weak to strong pairing transition. We show that the weak pairing phase of the model is governed by a chaotic attractor being non-trivial from both its topological and RG properties. In the strong pairing phase the RG flow is towards a conventional strong coupling fixed point. Finally, we propose an alternative way for obtaining $p$-wave superconductivity in a one-dimensional system without spin-orbit interaction.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2014

Mechanism for enhancement of superconductivity in multi-band systems with odd parity hybridization

The study of multi-band superconductivity is relevant for a variety of systems, from ultra cold atoms with population imbalance to particle physics, and condensed matter. As a consequence, this problem has been widely investigated bringing to light many new and interesting phenomena. In this work we point out and explore a correspondence between a two-band metal with a $k$-dependent hybridization and a uniformly polarized fermionic system in the presence of spin-orbit coupling (SOC). We study the ground state phase diagram of the metal in the presence of an attractive interaction. We find remarkable superconducting properties whenever hybridization mixes orbitals of different parities in neighboring sites. We show that this mechanism enhances superconductivity and drives the crossover from weak to strong coupling in analogy with SOC in cold atoms. We obtain the quantum phase transitions between the normal and superfluid states, as the intensity of different parameters characterizing the metal are varied, including Lifshitz transitions, with no symmetry breaking, associated with the appearance of soft modes in the Fermi surface.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2013

Nesting and lifetime effects in the FFLO state of quasi-one-dimensional imbalanced Fermi gases

Motivated by the recent experimental realization of a candidate to the Fulde-Ferrell (FF) and the Larkin-Ovchinnikov (LO) states in one dimensional (1D) atomic Fermi gases, we study the quantum phase transitions in these enigmatic, finite momentum-paired superfluids. We focus on the FF state and investigate the effects of the induced interaction on the stability of the FFLO phase in homogeneous spin-imbalanced quasi-1D Fermi gases at zero temperature. When this is taken into account we find a direct transition from the fully polarized to the FFLO state. Also, we consider the effect of a finite lifetime of the quasi-particles states in the normal-superfluid instability. In the limit of long lifetimes, the lifetime effect is irrelevant and the transition is directly from the fully polarized to the FFLO state. We show, however, that for sufficiently short lifetimes there is a quantum critical point (QCP), at a finite value of the mismatch of the Fermi wave-vectors of the different quasi-particles, that we fully characterize. In this case the transition is from the FFLO phase to a normal partially polarized state with increasing mismatch.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2013

Superconductor-normal metal quantum phase transition in dissipative and non-equilibrium systems

In physical systems, coupling to the environment gives rise to dissipation and decoherence. For nanoscopic materials this may be a determining factor of their physical behavior. However, even for macroscopic many-body systems, if the strength of this coupling is sufficiently strong, their ground state properties and phase diagram may be severely modified. Also dissipation is essential to allow a system in the presence of a time dependent perturbation to attain a steady, time independent state. In this case, the non-equilibrium phase diagram depends on the intensity of the perturbation and on the strength of the coupling of the system to the outside world. In this paper, we investigate the effects of both, dissipation and time dependent external sources in the phase diagram of a many-body system at zero and finite temperatures. For concreteness we consider the specific case of a superconducting layer under the action of an electric field and coupled to a metallic substrate. The former arises from a time dependent vector potential minimally coupled to the electrons in the layer. We introduce a Keldysh approach that allows to obtain the time dependence of the superconducting order parameter in an adiabatic regime. We study the phase diagram of this system as a function of the electric field, the coupling to the metallic substrate and temperature.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2012

Quantum normal-to-inhomogeneous superconductor phase transition in nearly two-dimensional metals

In multi-band systems, electrons from different orbitals coexist at the Fermi surface. An attractive interaction among these quasi-particles gives rise to inter-band or hybrid pairs which eventually condense in a superconducting state. These quasi-particles have a natural mismatch of their Fermi wave-vectors, $δk_F$, which depends on the strength of the hybridization between their orbitals. The existence of this natural scale suggests the possibility of inhomogeneous superconducting ground states in these systems, even in the absence of an applied magnetic field. Furthermore, since hybridization $V$ depends on pressure, this provides an external parameter to control the wave-vectors mismatch at the Fermi surface. In this work, we study the phase diagram of a two-dimensional, two-band metal with inter-band pairing. We show that as the mismatch between the Fermi wave-vectors of the two hybrid bands is reduced, the system presents a normal-to-inhomogeneous superconductor quantum phase transition at a critical value of the hybridization $V_c=Δ_0$. The superconducting ground state for $V<V_c$ is characterized by a wave-vector with magnitude $|\mathbf{q}_c|=q_c=2 Δ_0/\bar{v}_f$. Here $Δ_0$ is the superconducting gap in the homogeneous state and $\bar{v}_f$ the average Fermi velocity. We discuss the nature of the quantum critical point (QCP) at $V_c$ and obtain the associated quantum critical exponents.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2011

Interplay of quantum and classical fluctuations near quantum critical points

For a system near a quantum critical point (QCP), above its lower critical dimension $d_L$, there is in general a critical line of second order phase transitions that separates the broken symmetry phase at finite temperatures from the disordered phase. The phase transitions along this line are governed by thermal critical exponents that are different from those associated with the quantum critical point. We point out that, if the effective dimension of the QCP, $d_{eff}=d+z$ ($d$ is the Euclidean dimension of the system and $z$ the dynamic quantum critical exponent) is above its upper critical dimension $d_C$, there is an intermingle of classical (thermal) and quantum critical fluctuations near the QCP. This is due to the breakdown of the generalized scaling relation $ψ=νz$ between the shift exponent $ψ$ of the critical line and the crossover exponent $νz$, for $d+z>d_C$ by a \textit{dangerous irrelevant interaction}. This phenomenon has clear experimental consequences, like the suppression of the amplitude of classical critical fluctuations near the line of finite temperature phase transitions as the critical temperature is reduced approaching the QCP.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2010

Quantum criticality in inter-band superconductors

In fermionic systems with different types of quasi-particles, attractive interactions can give rise to exotic superconducting states, as pair density wave (PDW) superconductivity and breached pairing. In the last years the search for these new types of ground states in cold atom and in metallic systems has been intense. In the case of metals the different quasi-particles may be the up and down spin bands in an external magnetic field or bands arising from distinct atomic orbitals that coexist at a common Fermi surface. These systems present a complex phase diagram as a function of the difference between the Fermi wave-vectors of the different bands. This can be controlled by external means, varying the density in the two-component cold atom system or, in a metal, by applying an external magnetic field or pressure. Here we study the zero temperature instability of the normal system as the Fermi wave-vectors mismatch of the quasi-particles (bands) is reduced and find a second order quantum phase transition to a PDW superconducting state. From the nature of the quantum critical fluctuations close to the superconducting quantum critical point (SQCP), we obtain its dynamic critical exponent. It turns out to be $z=2$ and this allows to fully characterize the SQCP for dimensions $d \ge 2$.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2010

Fluctuations in a superconducting quantum critical point of multi-band metals

In multi-band metals quasi-particles arising from different atomic orbitals coexist at a common Fermi surface. Superconductivity in these materials may appear due to interactions within a band (intra-band) or among the distinct metallic bands (inter-band). Here we consider the suppression of superconductivity in the intra-band case due to hybridization. The fluctuations at the superconducting quantum critical point (SQCP) are obtained calculating the response of the system to a fictitious space and time dependent field, which couples to the superconducting order parameter. The appearance of superconductivity is related to the divergence of a generalized susceptibility. For a single band superconductor this coincides with the \textit{Thouless criterion}. For fixed chemical potential and large hybridization, the superconducting state has many features in common with breached pair superconductivity with unpaired electrons at the Fermi surface. The T=0 phase transition from the superconductor to the normal state is in the universality class of the density-driven Bose-Einstein condensation. For fixed number of particles and in the strong coupling limit, the system still has an instability to the normal sate with increasing hybridization.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2009

On the superconducting dome near antiferromagnetic quantum critical points

One of the most exciting discoveries in strongly correlated systems has been the existence of a superconducting dome on heavy fermions close to the quantum critical point where antiferromagnetic order disappears. It is hard even for the most skeptical not to admit that the excitations which bind the electrons in the Cooper pairs have a magnetic origin. As a system moves away from an antiferromagnetic quantum critical point, (AFQCP) the correlation length of the fluctuations decreases and the system goes into a local quantum critical regime. The attractive interaction mediated by the non-local part of these excitations vanishes and this allows to obtain an upper bound to the superconducting dome around an AFQCP.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2008

Pressure induced superconductor quantum critical point in multi-band systems

In multi-band superconductors as inter-metallic systems and heavy fermions, external pressure can reduce the critical temperature and eventually destroy superconductivity driving these systems to the normal state. In many cases this transition is continuous and is associated with a superconducting quantum critical point (SQCP). In this work we study a two-band superconductor in the presence of hybridization V. This one-body mixing term is due to the overlap of the different wave-functions. It can be tuned by external pressure and turns out as an important control parameter to study the phase diagram and the nature of the phase transitions. We use a BCS approximation and include both inter and intra-band attractive interactions. For negligible inter-band interactions, as hybridization (pressure) increases we find a SQCP separating a superconductor from a normal state at a critical value of the hybridization Vc. We obtain the behavior of the electronic specific heat close to the SQCP and the shape of the critical line as V approaches Vc.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2008

Pressure induced FFLO instability in multi-band superconductors

Multi-band systems as intermetallic and heavy fermion compounds have quasi-particles arising from different orbitals at their Fermi surface. Since these quasi-particles have different masses or densities, there is a natural mismatch of the Fermi wave-vectors associated with different orbitals. This makes these materials potential candidates to observe exotic superconducting phases as Sarma or FFLO phases, even in the absence of an external magnetic field. The distinct orbitals coexisting at the Fermi surface are generally hybridized and their degree of mixing can be controlled by external pressure. In this Communication we investigate the existence of an FFLO phase in a two-band BCS superconductor controlled by hybridization. At zero temperature, as hybridization (pressure) increases we find that the BCS state becomes unstable with respect to an inhomogeneous superconducting state characterized by a single wave-vector q.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2007

Asymmetric superconductivity in metallic systems

Different types of superfluid ground states have been investigated in systems of two species of fermions with Fermi surfaces that do not match. This study is relevant for cold atomic systems, condensed matter physics and quark matter. In this paper we consider this problem in the case the fermionic quasi-particles can transmute into one another and only their total number is conserved. We use a BCS approximation to study superconductivity in two-band metallic systems with inter and intra-band interactions. Tuning the hybridization between the bands varies the mismatch of the Fermi surfaces and produces different instabilities. For inter-band attractive interactions we find a first order normal-superconductor and a homogeneous metastable phase with gapless excitations. In the case of intra-band interactions, the transition from the superconductor to the normal state as hybridization increases is continuous and associated with a quantum critical point. The case when both interactions are present is also considered.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2007

Thermodynamic quantum critical behavior of the Kondo necklace model

We obtain the phase diagram and thermodynamic behavior of the Kondo necklace model for arbitrary dimensions $d$ using a representation for the localized and conduction electrons in terms of local Kondo singlet and triplet operators. A decoupling scheme on the double time Green's functions yields the dispersion relation for the excitations of the system. We show that in $d\geq 3$ there is an antiferromagnetically ordered state at finite temperatures terminating at a quantum critical point (QCP). In 2-d, long range magnetic order occurs only at T=0. The line of Neel transitions for $d>2$ varies with the distance to the quantum critical point QCP $|g|$ as, $T_N \propto |g|^ψ$ where the shift exponent $ψ=1/(d-1)$. In the paramagnetic side of the phase diagram, the spin gap behaves as $Δ\approx \sqrt{|g|}$ for $d \ge 3$ consistent with the value $z=1$ found for the dynamical critical exponent. We also find in this region a power law temperature dependence in the specific heat for $k_BT\ggΔ$ and along the non-Fermi liquid trajectory. For $k_BT \llΔ$, in the so-called Kondo spin liquid phase, the thermodynamic behavior is dominated by an exponential temperature dependence.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2006

Bose-Einstein condensation and entanglement in magnetic systems

We present a study of magnetic field induced quantum phase transitions in insulating systems. A generalized scaling theory is used to obtain the temperature dependence of several physical quantities along the quantum critical trajectory ($H=H_{C}$, $T\to0$) where $H$ is a longitudinal external magnetic field and $H_{C}$ the critical value at which the transition occurs. We consider transitions from a spin liquid at a critical field $H_{C1}$ and from a fully polarized paramagnet, at $H_{C2}$, into phases with long range order in the transverse components. The transitions at $H_{C1}$ and $H_{C2}$ can be viewed as Bose-Einstein condensations of magnons which however belong to different universality classes since they have different values of the dynamic critical exponent $z$. Finally, we use that the magnetic susceptibility is an entanglement witness to discuss how this type of correlation sets in as the system approaches the quantum critical point along the critical trajectory, $H=H_{C2}$, $T\to0$.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2006

Spin wave instabilities and field induced transitions in heavy fermions

We study phase transitions in heavy fermion systems due to spin-wave instabilities. One motivation is to determine the changes in the spin-wave parameters of a magnetically ordered heavy fermion system as it approaches a quantum critical point (QCP) by applying pressure. The other more actual is to provide an alternative approach, based on spin-wave instabilities, for the magnetic field induced transitions recently observed in antiferromagnetic heavy fermion materials.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2005

Universal behavior at discontinuous quantum phase transitions

Discontinuous quantum phase transitions besides their general interest are clearly relevant to the study of heavy fermions and magnetic transition metal compounds. Recent results show that in many systems belonging to these classes of materials, the magnetic transition changes from second order to first order as they approach the quantum critical point (QCP). We investigate here some mechanisms that may be responsible for this change. Specifically the coupling of the order parameter to soft modes and the competition between different types of order near the QCP. For weak first order quantum phase transitions general results are obtained. In particular we describe the thermodynamic behavior at this transition when it is approached from finite temperatures. This is the discontinuous equivalent of the non-Fermi liquid trajectory close to a conventional QCP in a heavy fermion material.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2004

Comment on "Universally Diverging Gruneisen Parameter and the Magnetocaloric Effect Close to a Quantum Critical Point"

In a recent Letter, Zhu et al. [L. Zhu et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 91, 066404 (2003)], obtained the divergence of the Gruneisen ratio close to a quantum critical point (QCP). We show that, in the case the effective dimension associated with the QCP is larger that the upper critical dimension (d+z >4), their result is inconsistent with the thermodynamic Ehrenfest equation. We discuss the reasons for this inconsistency.

cond-mat.str-el↗