We discuss the relationship between the fractional quantum Hall effect in the vicinity of the thin-torus, a.k.a. Tao-Thouless (TT), limit and quantum spin chains. We argue that the energetics of fractional quantum Hall states in Jain sequence at filling fraction ν = p /(2 p + 1) (and ν = 1 − p /(2 p + 1)) in the lowest Landau level is captured by S = 1 spin chains with p spins in the unit cell. These spin chains naturally arise at sub-leading order in e −2π 2 / L 2 1 which serves as an expansion parameter away from the TT limit ( L 1 → 0). We also corroborate earlier results on the smooth Fermi surface deformation of the gapless state at ν = 1/2, interpolating between a state described by a critical S = 1/2 chain and the bulk.
We discuss the relationship between the fractional quantum Hall effect in the vicinity of the thin-torus, a.k.a. Tao-Thouless (TT), limit and quantum spin chains. We argue that the energetics of fractional quantum Hall states in Jain sequence at filling fraction ν = p /(2 p + 1) (and ν = 1 − p /(2 p + 1)) in the lowest Landau level is captured by S = 1 spin chains with p spins in the unit cell. These spin chains naturally arise at sub-leading order in e −2π 2 / L 2 1 which serves as an expansion parameter away from the TT limit ( L 1 → 0). We also corroborate earlier results on the smooth Fermi surface deformation of the gapless state at ν = 1/2, interpolating between a state described by a critical S = 1/2 chain and the bulk.
We discuss the relationship between fractional quantum Hall (FQH) states at filling factor $\ensuremath{\nu}=p/(2p+1)$ and quantum spin chains. This series corresponds to the Jain series $\ensuremath{\nu}=p/(2mp+1)$ with m=1 where the composite fermion picture is realized. We show that the FQH states with toroidal boundary conditions beyond the thin-torus limit can be mapped to effective quantum spin S=1 chains with p spins in each unit cell. We calculate energy gaps and the correlation functions for both the FQH systems and the corresponding effective spin chains, using exact diagonalization and the infinite time-evolving block decimation (iTEBD) algorithm. We confirm that the mass gaps of these effective spin chains are decreased as p is increased which is similar to S=p integer Heisenberg chains. These results shed new light on a link between the hierarchy of FQH states and the Haldane conjecture for quantum spin chains.
We consider spin-polarized electrons in a single Landau level on a torus. The quantum Hall problem is mapped onto a one-dimensional lattice model with lattice constant $2\ensuremath{\pi}/{L}_{1}$, where L1 is a circumference of the torus (in units of the magnetic length). In the Tao-Thouless limit ${L}_{1}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}0$, the interacting many-electron problem is exactly diagonalized at any rational filling factor $\ensuremath{\nu}=p/q\ensuremath{\le}1$. For odd q, the ground state has the same qualitative properties as a bulk $({L}_{1}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}\ensuremath{\infty})$ quantum Hall hierarchy state and the lowest-energy quasiparticle excitations have the same fractional charges as in the bulk. These states are the ${L}_{1}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}0$ limits of the Laughlin and Jain wave functions for filling fractions where these exist. We argue that the exact solutions generically, for odd q, are continuously connected to the two-dimensional bulk quantum Hall hierarchy states---i.e., that there is no phase transition as ${L}_{1}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}\ensuremath{\infty}$ for filling factors where such states can be observed. For even-denominator fractions, a phase transition occurs as L1 increases. For $\ensuremath{\nu}=1/2$ this leads to the system being mapped onto a Luttinger liquid of neutral particles at small but finite L1; this then develops continuously into the composite fermion wave function that is believed to describe the bulk $\ensuremath{\nu}=1/2$ system. The analysis generalizes to non-Abelian quantum Hall states.
We consider the lowest Landau level on a torus as a function of its circumference L 1 . When L 1 → 0, the ground state at general rational filling fraction is a crystal with a gap—a Tao–Thouless state. For filling fractions ν = p /(2 pm + 1), these states are the limits of Laughlin's or Jain's wavefunctions describing the gapped quantum Hall states when L 1 → ∞ . For the half-filled Landau level, there is a transition to a Fermi sea of non-interacting neutral fermions (dipoles), or rather to a Luttinger liquid modification thereof, at L 1 ∼ 5 magnetic lengths. Using exact diagonalization we identify this state as a version of the Rezayi–Read state, and find that it develops continuously into the state that is believed to describe the observed metallic phase as L 1 → ∞ . Furthermore, the effective Landau level structure that emerges within the lowest Landau level is found to be a consequence of the magnetic symmetries.
We study a strong coupling expansion of the $\ensuremath{\nu}=1/3$ fractional quantum Hall state away from the Tao-Thouless limit and show that the leading quantum fluctuations lead to an effective spin-1 Hamiltonian that lacks parity symmetry. By analyzing the energetics, discrete symmetries of low-lying excitations, and string order parameters, we demonstrate that the $\ensuremath{\nu}=1/3$ fractional quantum Hall state is adiabatically connected to both Haldane and large-D phases and is characterized by a string order parameter which is dual to the ordinary one. This result indicates a close relation between (a generalized form of) the Haldane conjecture for spin chains and the fractional quantum Hall effect.
The fractional quantum Hall effect (FQHE), now entering it's fourth decade, continues to draw attention from the condensed matter community. New experiments in recent years are raising hopes that it will be possible to observe quasi-particles with non-abelian anyonic statistics. These particles could form the building blocks of a quantum computer. The quantum Hall states have topologically protected energy gaps to the low-lying set of excitations. This topological order is not a locally measurable quantity but rather a non-local object, and it is one of the keys to it's stability. From an early stage understanding of the FQHE has been facilitate by constructing trial wave functions. The topological classification of these wave functions have given further insight to the nature of the FQHE. An early, and successful, wave function construction for filling fractions ν=p/(2p+1) was that of composite fermions on planar and spherical geometries. Recently, new developments using conformal field theory have made it possible to also construct the full Haldane-Halperin hierarchy wave functions on planar and spherical geometries. In this thesis we extend this construction to a toroidal geometry, i.e. a flat surface with periodic boundary conditions. One of the defining features of topological states of matter in two dimensions is that the ground state is not unique on surfaces with non trivial topology, such as a torus. The archetypical example is the fractional quantum Hall effect, where a state at filling fraction ν=p/q, has at least a q-fold degeneracy on a torus. This has been shown explicitly for a few cases, such as the Laughlin states and the the Moore-Read states, by explicit construction of candidate electron wave functions with good overlap with numerically found states. In this thesis, we construct explicit torus wave functions for a large class of experimentally important quantum liquids, namely the chiral hierarchy states in the lowest Landau level. These states, which includes the prominently observed positive Jain sequence at filling fractions ν=p/(2p+1), are characterized by having boundary modes with only one chirality. Our construction relies heavily on previous work that expressed the hierarchy wave functions on a plane or a sphere in terms of correlation functions in a conformal field theory. This construction can be taken over to the torus when care is taken to ensure correct behaviour under the modular transformations that leave the geometry of the torus unchanged. Our construction solves the long standing problem of engineering torus wave functions for multi-component many-body states. Since the resulting expressions are rather complicated, we have carefully compared the simplest example, that of ν=2/5, with numerically found wave functions. We have found an extremely good overlap for arbitrary values of the modular parameter τ, that describes the geometry of the torus. Having explicit torus wave functions allows us to use the methods developed by Read and Read \\& Rezayi to numerically compute the quantum Hall viscosity. Hall viscosity is conjectured to be a topologically protected macroscopic transport coefficient characterizing the quantum Hall state. It is related to the shift of the same QH-fluid when it is put on a sphere. The good agreement with the theoretical prediction for the 2/5 state strongly suggests that our wave functions encodes all relevant topologically information. We also consider the Hall viscosity in the limit of a very thin torus. There we find that the viscosity changes as we approach the thin torus limit. Because of this we study the Laughlin state in that limit and see how the change in viscosity arises from a change in the Hamiltonian hopping elements. Finally we conclude that there are both qualitative and quantitative difference between the thin and the square torus. Thus, one has to be careful when interpreting results in the thin torus limit.
We introduce an exactly solvable fermion chain that describes a ν=1/3 fractional quantum Hall (FQH) state beyond the thin-torus limit. The ground state of our model is shown to be unique for each center-of-mass sector, and it has a matrix product representation that enables us to exactly calculate order parameters, correlation functions, and entanglement spectra. The ground state of our model shows striking similarities with the BCS wave functions and quantum spin-1 chains. Using the variational method with matrix product ansatz, we analytically calculate excitation gaps and vanishing of the compressibility expected in the FQH state. We also show that the above results can be related to a ν=1/2 bosonic FQH state.