Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Log inSign up
Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Blog
Job Board
Q3AS

© 2026 Aqora Quantum S.A.S.

TermsPrivacyLegal Notice

arXiv:1308.6094 · Physical Review B

Interaction-driven phases in the half-filled spinless honeycomb lattice from exact diagonalization

N. A. García-Martínez, Adolfo G. Grushin, Titus Neupert, Belén Valenzuela, Eduardo V. Castro

Published Dec 18, 2013• 71 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

We investigate the fate of interaction-driven phases in the half-filled honeycomb lattice for finite systems via exact diagonalization with nearest- and next-nearest-neighbor interactions. We find evidence for a charge density wave phase, a Kekul\'e bond order, and a sublattice charge-modulated phase in agreement with previously reported mean-field phase diagrams. No clear sign of an interaction-driven Chern insulator phase (Haldane phase) is found despite being predicted by the same mean-field analysis. We characterize these phases by their ground-state degeneracy and by calculating charge-order and bond-order correlation functions.

DOI
10.1103/physrevb.88.245123

Related papers

Phase diagram of interacting spinless fermions on the honeycomb lattice: A comprehensive exact diagonalization study

Sylvain Capponi, Andreas Martin Läuchli

We investigate the phase diagram of spinless fermions with nearest- and next-nearest-neighbor density-density interactions on the honeycomb lattice at half-filling. Using exact diagonalization techniques of the full Hamiltonian and constrained subspaces, combined with a careful choice of finite-size clusters, we determine the different charge orderings that occur for large interactions. In this regime, we find a two-sublattice N\'eel-like state, a charge modulated state with a tripling of the unit cell, a zigzag phase, and a charge ordered state with a 12-site unit cell we call N\'eel domain wall crystal, as well as a region of phase separation for attractive interactions. A sizable region of the phase diagram is classically degenerate, but it remains unclear whether an order-by-disorder mechanism will lift the degeneracy. For intermediate repulsion, we find evidence for a Kekul\'e or plaquette bond-order wave phase. We also investigate the possibility of a spontaneous Chern insulator phase (dubbed topological Mott insulator), as previously put forward by several mean-field studies. Although we are unable to detect convincing evidence for this phase based on energy spectra and order parameters, we find an enhancement of current-current correlations with the expected spatial structure compared to the noninteracting situation. While for the studied $t\ensuremath{-}{V}_{1}\ensuremath{-}{V}_{2}$ model, the phase transition to the putative topological Mott insulator is preempted by the phase transitions to the various ordered states, our findings might hint at the possibility for a topological Mott insulator in an enlarged Hamiltonian parameter space, where the competing phases are suppressed.

arXiv:1505.01676•Physical Review B•Aug 26, 2015•74 citations

Interaction-driven phases in the half-filled honeycomb lattice: An infinite density matrix renormalization group study

Johannes Motruk, Adolfo G. Grushin, Fernando de Juan +1 more

The emergence of the Haldane Chern insulator state due to strong short-range repulsive interactions in the half-filled fermionic spinless honeycomb lattice model has been proposed and challenged with different methods and yet it still remains controversial. In this work we revisit the problem using the infinite density matrix renormalization group method and report numerical evidence supporting (i) the absence of the Chern insulator state, (ii) two previously unnoticed charge ordered phases, and (iii) the existence and stability of all the nontopological competing orders that were found previously within mean field. In addition, we discuss the nature of the corresponding phase transitions based on our numerical data. Our work establishes the phase diagram of the half-filled honeycomb lattice model, tilting the balance towards the absence of a Chern insulator phase for this model.

arXiv:1505.01674•Physical Review B•Aug 26, 2015•77 citations

Interaction-induced anomalous quantum Hall state on the honeycomb lattice

Tanja Đurić, Nicholas Chancellor, Igor F. Herbut

We examine the existence of the interaction-generated quantum anomalous Hall phase on the honeycomb lattice. For the spinless model at half-filling, the existence of a quantum anomalous Hall phase (Chern insulator phase) has been predicted using mean-field methods. However, recent exact diagonalization studies for small clusters with periodic boundary conditions have not found a clear sign of an interaction-driven Chern insulator phase. We use the exact diagonalization method to study properties of small clusters with open boundary conditions, and contrary to previous studies, we find clear signatures of the topological phase transition for finite-size clusters. We also examine the applicability of the entangled-plaquette-state (correlator-product-state) ansatz to describe the ground states of the system. Within this approach the lattice is covered with plaquettes and the ground-state wave function is written in terms of the plaquette coefficients. Configurational weights can then be optimized using a variational Monte Carlo algorithm. Using the entangled-plaquette-state ansatz we study the ground-state properties of the system for larger system sizes and show that the results agree with the exact diagonalization results for small clusters. This confirms the validity of the entangled-plaquette-state ansatz to describe the ground states of the system and provides further confirmation of the existence of the quantum anomalous Hall phase in the thermodynamic limit, as predicted by mean-field theory calculations.

arXiv:1401.5680•Physical Review B•Apr 21, 2014•49 citations

Topological phase in the extended Haldane-Hubbard model with sublattice-dependent repulsion

Bao-Qing Wang, Can Shao, Takami Tohyama +2 more

We study the ground-state phase diagram of the half-filled extended Haldane-Hubbard model on the honeycomb lattice with sublattice-dependent on-site repulsion (${U}_{\text{A/B}}$) using the exact diagonalization (ED) and mean-field (MF) methods. The resulting phase diagram shows that there is a topologically nontrivial phase with the Chern number $C=1$, emerging via the development of the imbalance between ${U}_{\text{A}}$ and ${U}_{\text{B}}$. In this phase, the antiferromagnetic correlations are observed in the ED calculation, in line with the finite antiferromagnetic order obtained by the MF method. The spontaneous symmetry breaking of SU(2) spin rotation in the phase is also identified in the MF level. Distinct from previous studies in which the exotic $C=1$ phase relies on the interplay between sublattice-dependent potentials and electronic interactions, our paper presents an alternative way by solely tuning the on-site interactions.

arXiv:2407.02941•Physical review. B./Physical review. B•Jul 2, 2024•4 citations

Phase diagram of the interacting Haldane model with spin-dependent sublattice potentials

Can Shao, Hong‐Gang Luo

Using the exact-diagonalization (ED) and mean-field (MF) approaches, we investigate the ground-state phase diagram of the interacting Haldane model on the honeycomb lattice, incorporating spin-dependent sublattice potentials ${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}}_{\ensuremath{\sigma},\ensuremath{\alpha}}$. Here $\ensuremath{\alpha}=\text{A},\text{B}$ and $\ensuremath{\sigma}=\ensuremath{\uparrow},\ensuremath{\downarrow}$ denote the sublattice and spin components, respectively. Setting ${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}}_{\ensuremath{\sigma},\text{A}}=+\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}$ $(\ensuremath{-}\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}})$ and ${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}}_{\ensuremath{\sigma},\text{B}}=\ensuremath{-}\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}$ $(+\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}})$ for $\ensuremath{\sigma}=\ensuremath{\uparrow}$ $(\ensuremath{\downarrow})$ results in the system favoring a spin ordered state. Conversely, introducing the nearest-neighbor Coulomb interaction can induce charge ordering in the system. Due to the competition between these factors, we observe that in both ED and MF approaches, an exotic state with Chern number $C=1$ survives amidst two locally ordered phases and a topologically ordered phase with $C=2$. In the ED method, various properties, such as the fidelity metric, the excitation gaps and the structure factors, are employed to identify critical points. In the MF method, using a sufficiently large lattice size, we define the local order parameters and band gaps to characterize the phase transitions. The interacting Haldane model and the spin-dependent lattice potential may be experimentally realized in an ultracold atom gas, providing a potential means to detect this intriguing state.

arXiv:2401.17813•Physical review. B./Physical review. B•Jun 3, 2024•3 citations

Interaction effects and quantum phase transitions in topological insulators

Christopher N. Varney, Kai Sun, Marcos Rigol +1 more

We study strong correlation effects in topological insulators via the Lanczos algorithm, which we utilize to calculate the exact many-particle ground-state wave function and its topological properties. We analyze the simple, noninteracting Haldane model on a honeycomb lattice with known topological properties and demonstrate that these properties are already evident in small clusters. Next, we consider interacting fermions by introducing repulsive nearest-neighbor interactions. A first-order quantum phase transition was discovered at finite interaction strength between the topological band insulator and a topologically trivial Mott insulating phase by use of the fidelity metric and the charge-density-wave structure factor. We construct the phase diagram at $T=0$ as a function of the interaction strength and the complex phase for the next-nearest-neighbor hoppings. Finally, we consider the Haldane model with interacting hard-core bosons, where no evidence for a topological phase is observed. An important general conclusion of our work is that despite the intrinsic nonlocality of topological phases their key topological properties manifest themselves already in small systems and therefore can be studied numerically via exact diagonalization and observed experimentally, e.g., with trapped ions and cold atoms in optical lattices.

arXiv:1007.3502•Physical Review B•Sep 28, 2010•142 citations
We investigate the fate of interaction-driven phases in the half-filled honeycomb lattice for finite systems via exact diagonalization with nearest- and next-nearest-neighbor interactions. We find evidence for a charge density wave phase, a Kekul'e bond order, and a sublattice charge-modulated phase in agreement with previously reported mean-field phase diagrams. No clear sign of an interaction-driven Chern insulator phase (Haldane phase) is found despite being predicted by the same mean-field analysis. We characterize these phases by their ground-state degeneracy and by calculating charge-order and bond-order correlation functions.
We investigate the phase diagram of spinless fermions with nearest- and next-nearest-neighbor density-density interactions on the honeycomb lattice at half-filling. Using exact diagonalization techniques of the full Hamiltonian and constrained subspaces, combined with a careful choice of finite-size clusters, we determine the different charge orderings that occur for large interactions. In this regime, we find a two-sublattice N\'eel-like state, a charge modulated state with a tripling of the unit cell, a zigzag phase, and a charge ordered state with a 12-site unit cell we call N\'eel domain wall crystal, as well as a region of phase separation for attractive interactions. A sizable region of the phase diagram is classically degenerate, but it remains unclear whether an order-by-disorder mechanism will lift the degeneracy. For intermediate repulsion, we find evidence for a Kekul\'e or plaquette bond-order wave phase. We also investigate the possibility of a spontaneous Chern insulator phase (dubbed topological Mott insulator), as previously put forward by several mean-field studies. Although we are unable to detect convincing evidence for this phase based on energy spectra and order parameters, we find an enhancement of current-current correlations with the expected spatial structure compared to the noninteracting situation. While for the studied $t\ensuremath{-}{V}_{1}\ensuremath{-}{V}_{2}$ model, the phase transition to the putative topological Mott insulator is preempted by the phase transitions to the various ordered states, our findings might hint at the possibility for a topological Mott insulator in an enlarged Hamiltonian parameter space, where the competing phases are suppressed.
The emergence of the Haldane Chern insulator state due to strong short-range repulsive interactions in the half-filled fermionic spinless honeycomb lattice model has been proposed and challenged with different methods and yet it still remains controversial. In this work we revisit the problem using the infinite density matrix renormalization group method and report numerical evidence supporting (i) the absence of the Chern insulator state, (ii) two previously unnoticed charge ordered phases, and (iii) the existence and stability of all the nontopological competing orders that were found previously within mean field. In addition, we discuss the nature of the corresponding phase transitions based on our numerical data. Our work establishes the phase diagram of the half-filled honeycomb lattice model, tilting the balance towards the absence of a Chern insulator phase for this model.
We examine the existence of the interaction-generated quantum anomalous Hall phase on the honeycomb lattice. For the spinless model at half-filling, the existence of a quantum anomalous Hall phase (Chern insulator phase) has been predicted using mean-field methods. However, recent exact diagonalization studies for small clusters with periodic boundary conditions have not found a clear sign of an interaction-driven Chern insulator phase. We use the exact diagonalization method to study properties of small clusters with open boundary conditions, and contrary to previous studies, we find clear signatures of the topological phase transition for finite-size clusters. We also examine the applicability of the entangled-plaquette-state (correlator-product-state) ansatz to describe the ground states of the system. Within this approach the lattice is covered with plaquettes and the ground-state wave function is written in terms of the plaquette coefficients. Configurational weights can then be optimized using a variational Monte Carlo algorithm. Using the entangled-plaquette-state ansatz we study the ground-state properties of the system for larger system sizes and show that the results agree with the exact diagonalization results for small clusters. This confirms the validity of the entangled-plaquette-state ansatz to describe the ground states of the system and provides further confirmation of the existence of the quantum anomalous Hall phase in the thermodynamic limit, as predicted by mean-field theory calculations.
We study the ground-state phase diagram of the half-filled extended Haldane-Hubbard model on the honeycomb lattice with sublattice-dependent on-site repulsion (UA/B{U}_{\text{A/B}}UA/B​) using the exact diagonalization (ED) and mean-field (MF) methods. The resulting phase diagram shows that there is a topologically nontrivial phase with the Chern number C=1C=1C=1, emerging via the development of the imbalance between UA{U}_{\text{A}}UA​ and UB{U}_{\text{B}}UB​. In this phase, the antiferromagnetic correlations are observed in the ED calculation, in line with the finite antiferromagnetic order obtained by the MF method. The spontaneous symmetry breaking of SU(2) spin rotation in the phase is also identified in the MF level. Distinct from previous studies in which the exotic C=1C=1C=1 phase relies on the interplay between sublattice-dependent potentials and electronic interactions, our paper presents an alternative way by solely tuning the on-site interactions.
Using the exact-diagonalization (ED) and mean-field (MF) approaches, we investigate the ground-state phase diagram of the interacting Haldane model on the honeycomb lattice, incorporating spin-dependent sublattice potentials ${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}}_{\ensuremath{\sigma},\ensuremath{\alpha}}$. Here $\ensuremath{\alpha}=\text{A},\text{B}$ and $\ensuremath{\sigma}=\ensuremath{\uparrow},\ensuremath{\downarrow}$ denote the sublattice and spin components, respectively. Setting ${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}}_{\ensuremath{\sigma},\text{A}}=+\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}$ $(\ensuremath{-}\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}})$ and ${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}}_{\ensuremath{\sigma},\text{B}}=\ensuremath{-}\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}$ $(+\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}})$ for $\ensuremath{\sigma}=\ensuremath{\uparrow}$ $(\ensuremath{\downarrow})$ results in the system favoring a spin ordered state. Conversely, introducing the nearest-neighbor Coulomb interaction can induce charge ordering in the system. Due to the competition between these factors, we observe that in both ED and MF approaches, an exotic state with Chern number C=1C=1C=1 survives amidst two locally ordered phases and a topologically ordered phase with C=2C=2C=2. In the ED method, various properties, such as the fidelity metric, the excitation gaps and the structure factors, are employed to identify critical points. In the MF method, using a sufficiently large lattice size, we define the local order parameters and band gaps to characterize the phase transitions. The interacting Haldane model and the spin-dependent lattice potential may be experimentally realized in an ultracold atom gas, providing a potential means to detect this intriguing state.
We study strong correlation effects in topological insulators via the Lanczos algorithm, which we utilize to calculate the exact many-particle ground-state wave function and its topological properties. We analyze the simple, noninteracting Haldane model on a honeycomb lattice with known topological properties and demonstrate that these properties are already evident in small clusters. Next, we consider interacting fermions by introducing repulsive nearest-neighbor interactions. A first-order quantum phase transition was discovered at finite interaction strength between the topological band insulator and a topologically trivial Mott insulating phase by use of the fidelity metric and the charge-density-wave structure factor. We construct the phase diagram at T=0T=0T=0 as a function of the interaction strength and the complex phase for the next-nearest-neighbor hoppings. Finally, we consider the Haldane model with interacting hard-core bosons, where no evidence for a topological phase is observed. An important general conclusion of our work is that despite the intrinsic nonlocality of topological phases their key topological properties manifest themselves already in small systems and therefore can be studied numerically via exact diagonalization and observed experimentally, e.g., with trapped ions and cold atoms in optical lattices.