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arXiv:0805.4623 · Physical Review B

Symmetry-breaking Fermi surface deformations from central interactions in two dimensions

Jorge Quintanilla, Masudul Haque, A. J. Schofield

Published Jul 29, 2008• 32 citations
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Abstract

We present a mean-field theory of the Pomeranchuk instability in two dimensions, starting from a generic central interaction potential described in terms of a few microscopic parameters. For a significant range of parameters, the instability is found to be pre-empted by a first-order quantum phase transition. We provide the ground-state phase diagram in terms of our generic parameters.

DOI
10.1103/physrevb.78.035131

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Electron-electron interactions can induce Fermi surface deformations which break the point-group symmetry of the lattice structure of the system. In the vicinity of such a the Fermi surface is easily deformed by anisotropic perturbations, and exhibits enhanced collective fluctuations. We show that critical Fermi surface fluctuations near a d-wave Pomeranchuk instability in two dimensions lead to large anisotropic decay rates for single-particle excitations, which destroy Fermi liquid behavior over the whole surface except at the Brillouin zone diagonal.

•Mar 9, 2003•0 citations
We present a mean-field theory of the Pomeranchuk instability in two dimensions, starting from a generic central interaction potential described in terms of a few microscopic parameters. For a significant range of parameters, the instability is found to be pre-empted by a first-order quantum phase transition. We provide the ground-state phase diagram in terms of our generic parameters.
We address at the mean field level the emergence of a Pomeranchuk instability in a uniform Fermi liquid with central particle-particle interactions. We find that Pomeranchuk instabilities with all symmetries except l=1l=1l=1 can take place if the interaction is repulsive and has a finite range r0{r}_{0}r0​ of the order of the interparticle distance. We demonstrate this by solving the mean field equations analytically for an explicit model interaction, as well as numerical results for more realistic potentials. We find in addition to the Pomeranchuk instability other, subtler phase transitions in which the Fermi surface changes topology without rotational symmetry breaking. We argue that such interaction-driven topological transitions may be as generic to such systems as the Pomeranchuk instability.
The relation between the broken rotational symmetry of a system and the topology of its Fermi surface is studied for the two-dimensional system with the quasiparticle interaction f ( p , p' ) having a sharp peak at | p − p' | = q 0 . It is shown that, in the case of attraction and q 0 = 2 p F the first instability manifesting itself with the growth of the interaction strength is the Pomeranchuk instability. This instability appearing in the L = 2 channel gives rise to a second order phase transition to a nematic phase. The Monte Carlo calculations demonstrate that this transition is followed by a sequence of the first and second order phase transitions corresponding to the changes in the symmetry and topology of the Fermi surface. In the case of repulsion and small values of q 0 , the first transition is a topological transition to a state with the spontaneously broken rotational symmetry, namely, corresponding to the nucleation of L ≃ π( p F / q 0 − 1) small hole pockets at the distance p F − q 0 from the center and the deformation of the outer Fermi surface with the characteristic multipole number equal to L . At q 0 → 0, when the model under study transforms to the two-dimensional Nozières model, the multipole number characterizing the spontaneous deformation is L → ∞, whereas the infinitely folded Fermi curve acquires the Hausdorff dimension D = 2 which corresponds to the state with the fermion condensate.
We analyze a mean-field model of electrons on a square lattice with two types of interaction: forward scattering favoring a ddd-wave Pomeranchuk instability and a BCS pairing interaction driving ddd-wave superconductivity. By tuning the interaction parameters a rich variety of phase diagrams is obtained. If the BCS interaction is not too strong, Fermi surface symmetry breaking is stabilized around van Hove filling, and coexists with superconductivity at low temperatures. For pure forward scattering Fermi surface symmetry breaking occurs typically via a first order transition at low temperatures. The presence of superconductivity reduces the first order character of this transition and, if strong enough, can turn it into a continuous one. This gives rise to a quantum critical point within the superconducting phase. The superconducting gap tends to suppress Fermi surface symmetry breaking. For a relatively strong BCS interaction, Fermi surface symmetry breaking can be limited to intermediate temperatures, or can be suppressed completely by pairing.
Electron-electron interactions can induce Fermi surface deformations which break the point-group symmetry of the lattice structure of the system. In the vicinity of such a "Pomeranchuk instability" the Fermi surface is easily deformed by anisotropic perturbations, and exhibits enhanced collective fluctuations. We show that critical Fermi surface fluctuations near a d-wave Pomeranchuk instability in two dimensions lead to large anisotropic decay rates for single-particle excitations, which destroy Fermi-liquid behavior over the whole surface except at the Brillouin zone diagonal.
We analyze a mean-field model of electrons with pure forward scattering interactions on a square lattice which exhibits spontaneous Fermi surface symmetry breaking with a ddd-wave order parameter, the surface expands along the kx{k}_{x}kx​ axis and shrinks along the ky{k}_{y}ky​ axis (or vice versa). The symmetry-broken phase is stabilized below a dome-shaped transition line ${T}_{c}(\ensuremath{\mu})$, with a maximal Tc{T}_{c}Tc​ near van Hove filling. The phase transition is usually first order at the edges of the transition line, and always second order around its center. The ddd-wave compressibility of the Fermi surface is however strongly enhanced even near the first order transition down to zero temperature. In the weak coupling limit the phase diagram is fully determined by a single nonuniversal energy scale, and hence dimensionless ratios of different characteristic quantities are universal. Adding a uniform repulsion to the forward scattering interaction, the two tricritical points at the ends of the second order transition line are shifted to lower temperatures. For a particularly favorable choice of hopping and interaction parameters one of the first order edges is replaced completely by a second order transition line, leading to a quantum critical point.
Electron-electron interactions can induce Fermi surface deformations which break the point-group symmetry of the lattice structure of the system. In the vicinity of such a the Fermi surface is easily deformed by anisotropic perturbations, and exhibits enhanced collective fluctuations. We show that critical Fermi surface fluctuations near a d-wave Pomeranchuk instability in two dimensions lead to large anisotropic decay rates for single-particle excitations, which destroy Fermi liquid behavior over the whole surface except at the Brillouin zone diagonal.