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:1309.1470 · Physical Review B

Unconventional scaling of resistivity in two-dimensional Fermi liquids

Jonathan M. Buhmann

Published Dec 23, 2013• 11 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

We study the temperature dependence of the electrical resistivity of interacting two-dimensional Fermi liquids. We perform a numerical simulation of the nonequilibrium state based on semiclassical Boltzmann transport theory. A two-dimensional system of quasiparticles on a square lattice serves as a model system. We use a single-orbital tight-binding model of the dispersion. For conceptual purposes, we choose a simple repulsive onsite interaction that leads to quasiparticle scattering and delta-potential scatterers as a model of nonmagnetic impurity scattering. Through our simulation, we demonstrate that deviations from the predictions of standard Fermi-liquid theory can arise due to the nontrivial scattering geometry of umklapp processes, in special cases even in the ultralow-temperature limit. We show through qualitative arguments how these unconventional scaling properties of the electrical resistivity, which are often interpreted as indication of a non-Fermi-liquid state, can arise due to special geometric conditions of the Fermi surface. The appearance of robust deviations from the predictions of Fermi-liquid theory within our simple model presents a viewpoint in order to interpret unconventional transport properties in electron-electron scattering dominated metallic systems.

DOI
10.1103/physrevb.88.245128

Related papers

Electrical Conductivity of Interacting Fermions. II. Effects of Normal Scattering Processes in the Presence of Umklapp Scattering Processes

Hideaki Maebashi, Hidetoshi Fukuyama

The electrical resistivity due only to mutual Coulomb interaction of the d -dimensional lattice electron systems ( d ≥2) in the presence of Umklapp scattering processes is studied on the basis of the Fermi liquid theory. It is shown that normal scattering processes generally contribute to the resistivity if Umklapp scattering processes are present. This fact gives a natural explanation of the resistivity of the d =∞ Hubbard model which is determined only by the damping rate of quasi-particles, γ. In the case of d =2, however, it is shown that the resistivity is proportional to T 2 , T being the temperature, even when normal scattering processes, which give T 2 log T -contribution to γ, contribute to the resistivity. In the special case of the square lattice, where the transfer integrals are only between the nearest neighbors, the coefficient of the T 2 -term in the second order of the interaction is shown to diverge as (1/δ) log (1 / δ) when δ→0, δ being the doping rate away from half-filling.

Journal of the Physical Society of Japan•Jan 15, 1998•37 citations

Quantum-critical transport in marginal Fermi liquids

Hideaki Maebashi, Chandra M. Varma

We use the Kubo response functions to calculate the electrical and thermal conductivity and Seebeck coefficient at low temperatures and frequencies in the quantum-critical region for fermions on a lattice. The theory uses scattering of the fermions with the previously derived collective fluctuations due to topological defects of the quantum XY model coupled to fermions. The microscopic model is applicable to the fluctuations of the loop-current order in cuprates as well as to a class of quasi-two-dimensional heavy-fermion and other metallic antiferromagnets, and proposed recently also for the possible loop-current order in Moiré twisted bi-layer graphene and bilayer WSe$_2$. All these metals have a linear-in-temperature electrical resistivity in the quantum-critical region of their phase diagrams, often termed ``Planckian" resistivity. The solution of the Kubo equation for transport shows that vertex renormalizations to the external fields, beside those caused by Aslamazov-Larkin (A-L) processes, are absent. A-L appears as an Umklapp scattering matrix, which gives a temperature-independent multiplicative factor for the electrical resistivity but does not affect the thermal conductivity. We also show that the mass renormalization which gives a logarithmic enhancement of the marginal Fermi-liquid specific heat does not appear in the electrical resistivity and, more remarkably, in the thermal conductivity. On the other hand the mass renormalization $\propto \ln ω_c/T$ appears in the Seebeck coefficient. We also discuss in detail the conservation laws which play a crucial role in all transport properties. We calculate exactly, the numerical coefficients of the transport properties for a circular Fermi surface. The leading temperature dependences is shown to remain the same for a general Fermi surface, but it is too messy to calculate the numerical coefficient.

arXiv:2207.11982•Physical review. B./Physical review. B•Dec 10, 2025•5 citations

Resilient strange metal at an unconventional quantum critical point in $d=2$

Jérôme Leblanc, A.–M. S. Tremblay

Properties of the two-dimensional Hubbard model with nearest-neighbor hopping are under scrutiny in cold-atom experiments and diagrammatic quantum Monte Carlo. Given the controlled nature of these approaches, it is timely to make predictions about strange-metal behavior and its relation to quantum-critical properties. Even for interaction strengths below the Mott transition, several peculiarities occur at the quantum critical point separating Fermi liquid and incommensurate spin-density wave order. Here, we predict, using the non-perturbative improved two-particle self-consistent approach, that for correlation lengths ranging from about one to one hundred lattice spacings, Kohn anomalies on the underlying Fermi surface lead to unconventional critical exponents. The temperature dependence of the single-particle self-energy acquires strong momentum dependence along the Fermi surface with no clear evidence of Landau quasiparticles. Nevertheless, we observe strange-metal behavior, namely, resistivity that scales linearly with temperature as $T\rightarrow{0}$. Our work shows that a linear temperature dependence of resistivity arises without a linear-in-temperature self-energy along the Fermi surface, as is often assumed.

arXiv:2608.05988•Aug 6, 2026•0 citations

Strange Metals and Planckian Transport in a Gapless Phase from Spatially Random Interactions

Aavishkar A. Patel, Peter Lunts, Michael S. Albergo

“Strange” metals that do not follow the predictions of Fermi liquid theory are prevalent in materials that feature superconductivity arising from electron interactions. In recent years, it has been hypothesized that spatial randomness in electron interactions must play a crucial role in strange metals for their hallmark linear-in-temperature ( T ) resistivity to survive down to low temperatures where phonon and umklapp processes are ineffective, as is observed in experiments. However, a clear picture of how this happens has not yet been provided in a realistic model free from artificial constructions, such as large- N limits and replica tricks. We study a realistic model of two-dimensional metals with spatially random antiferromagnetic interactions in a nonperturbative regime, using numerically exact high-performance, large-scale hybrid Monte Carlo simulation and exact averages over the quenched spatial randomness. Our simulations reproduce strange metals’ key experimental signature of linear-in- T resistivity with a universal “Planckian” transport scattering rate Γ tr ∼ k B T / ℏ that is independent of coupling constants. We further find that strange metallicity in these systems is not associated with a quantum critical point and, instead, arises from a phase of matter with gapless antiferromagnetic fluctuations that lacks long-range correlations and spans an extended region of parameter space: A feature that is also observed in several experiments. These gapless antiferromagnetic fluctuations take the form of spatially localized overdamped modes, whose presence could possibly be detected using recently developed nanoscale magnetometry methods. Our work paves the way for an eventual microscopic understanding of the role of spatial disorder in determining important properties of correlated-electron materials.

arXiv:2410.05365•Physical Review X•Aug 19, 2025•9 citations

Low-temperature T -linear resistivity due to umklapp scattering from a critical mode

Patrick A. Lee

We consider the transport properties of a model of fermions scattered by a critical bosonic mode. The mode is overdamped and scattering is mainly in the forward direction. Such a mode appears at the quantum critical point for an electronic nematic phase transition and in gauge theories for a U(1) spin liquid. It leads to a short fermion lifetime, violating Landau's criterion for a Fermi liquid. In spite of this, transport can be described by a Boltzmann equation. We include momentum relaxation by umklapp scattering, supplemented by weak impurity scattering. We find that above a very low temperature which scales with ${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}}_{q}^{3}$, where ${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}}_{q}$ is the minimum umklapp scattering vector, the resistivity is linear in $T$ with a coefficient which is independent of the amount of disorder. This picture holds until the temperature dependent part of the resistivity exceeds that due to impurity scattering. We compare the relaxation time approximation with an exact numerical solution of the Boltzmann equation. Surprisingly we find that, unlike the resistivity, the Hall coefficient strongly deviates from the relaxation time approximation and shows a strong reduction with increasing temperature. We comment on possible comparisons with experiments on high ${T}_{c}$ cuprates.

arXiv:2012.09339•Physical review. B./Physical review. B•Jul 19, 2021•32 citations

Universal Theory of Incoherent Metals

Aaron Kleger, N. V. Gnezdilov, Rufus Boyack

Numerous unconventional superconductors such as cuprates, heavy-fermions, and twisted-bilayer graphene exhibit incoherent metallic transport above the superconducting critical temperature. This phenomenon cannot be described with Fermi-liquid theory and has presented a significant theoretical challenge to overcome. We utilize the two-dimensional Yukawa-SYK model of fermions with spatially random coupling to quantum-critical bosons to study transport in a manner which is non-perturbative in the coupling strength. Our work provides a microscopic model of quantum-critical incoherent metals and their concomitant properties, including a non-Boltzmann transport formula between resistivity and quasi-particle lifetime, violation of the Mott-Ioffe-Regel resistivity bound, and violation of the Kovtun-Son-Starinets shear viscosity to entropy density bound.

arXiv:2605.03013•May 4, 2026•0 citations
We study the temperature dependence of the electrical resistivity of interacting two-dimensional Fermi liquids. We perform a numerical simulation of the nonequilibrium state based on semiclassical Boltzmann transport theory. A two-dimensional system of quasiparticles on a square lattice serves as a model system. We use a single-orbital tight-binding model of the dispersion. For conceptual purposes, we choose a simple repulsive onsite interaction that leads to quasiparticle scattering and delta-potential scatterers as a model of nonmagnetic impurity scattering. Through our simulation, we demonstrate that deviations from the predictions of standard Fermi-liquid theory can arise due to the nontrivial scattering geometry of umklapp processes, in special cases even in the ultralow-temperature limit. We show through qualitative arguments how these unconventional scaling properties of the electrical resistivity, which are often interpreted as indication of a non-Fermi-liquid state, can arise due to special geometric conditions of the Fermi surface. The appearance of robust deviations from the predictions of Fermi-liquid theory within our simple model presents a viewpoint in order to interpret unconventional transport properties in electron-electron scattering dominated metallic systems.
The electrical resistivity due only to mutual Coulomb interaction of the d -dimensional lattice electron systems ( d ≥2) in the presence of Umklapp scattering processes is studied on the basis of the Fermi liquid theory. It is shown that normal scattering processes generally contribute to the resistivity if Umklapp scattering processes are present. This fact gives a natural explanation of the resistivity of the d =∞ Hubbard model which is determined only by the damping rate of quasi-particles, γ. In the case of d =2, however, it is shown that the resistivity is proportional to T 2 , T being the temperature, even when normal scattering processes, which give T 2 log T -contribution to γ, contribute to the resistivity. In the special case of the square lattice, where the transfer integrals are only between the nearest neighbors, the coefficient of the T 2 -term in the second order of the interaction is shown to diverge as (1/δ) log (1 / δ) when δ→0, δ being the doping rate away from half-filling.
We use the Kubo response functions to calculate the electrical and thermal conductivity and Seebeck coefficient at low temperatures and frequencies in the quantum-critical region for fermions on a lattice. The theory uses scattering of the fermions with the previously derived collective fluctuations due to topological defects of the quantum XY model coupled to fermions. The microscopic model is applicable to the fluctuations of the loop-current order in cuprates as well as to a class of quasi-two-dimensional heavy-fermion and other metallic antiferromagnets, and proposed recently also for the possible loop-current order in Moiré twisted bi-layer graphene and bilayer WSe2_22​. All these metals have a linear-in-temperature electrical resistivity in the quantum-critical region of their phase diagrams, often termed ``Planckian" resistivity. The solution of the Kubo equation for transport shows that vertex renormalizations to the external fields, beside those caused by Aslamazov-Larkin (A-L) processes, are absent. A-L appears as an Umklapp scattering matrix, which gives a temperature-independent multiplicative factor for the electrical resistivity but does not affect the thermal conductivity. We also show that the mass renormalization which gives a logarithmic enhancement of the marginal Fermi-liquid specific heat does not appear in the electrical resistivity and, more remarkably, in the thermal conductivity. On the other hand the mass renormalization ∝ln⁡ωc/T\propto \ln ω_c/T∝lnωc​/T appears in the Seebeck coefficient. We also discuss in detail the conservation laws which play a crucial role in all transport properties. We calculate exactly, the numerical coefficients of the transport properties for a circular Fermi surface. The leading temperature dependences is shown to remain the same for a general Fermi surface, but it is too messy to calculate the numerical coefficient.
Resilient strange metal at an unconventional quantum critical point in d=2d=2d=2
Properties of the two-dimensional Hubbard model with nearest-neighbor hopping are under scrutiny in cold-atom experiments and diagrammatic quantum Monte Carlo. Given the controlled nature of these approaches, it is timely to make predictions about strange-metal behavior and its relation to quantum-critical properties. Even for interaction strengths below the Mott transition, several peculiarities occur at the quantum critical point separating Fermi liquid and incommensurate spin-density wave order. Here, we predict, using the non-perturbative improved two-particle self-consistent approach, that for correlation lengths ranging from about one to one hundred lattice spacings, Kohn anomalies on the underlying Fermi surface lead to unconventional critical exponents. The temperature dependence of the single-particle self-energy acquires strong momentum dependence along the Fermi surface with no clear evidence of Landau quasiparticles. Nevertheless, we observe strange-metal behavior, namely, resistivity that scales linearly with temperature as T→0T\rightarrow{0}T→0. Our work shows that a linear temperature dependence of resistivity arises without a linear-in-temperature self-energy along the Fermi surface, as is often assumed.
“Strange” metals that do not follow the predictions of Fermi liquid theory are prevalent in materials that feature superconductivity arising from electron interactions. In recent years, it has been hypothesized that spatial randomness in electron interactions must play a crucial role in strange metals for their hallmark linear-in-temperature ( T ) resistivity to survive down to low temperatures where phonon and umklapp processes are ineffective, as is observed in experiments. However, a clear picture of how this happens has not yet been provided in a realistic model free from artificial constructions, such as large- N limits and replica tricks. We study a realistic model of two-dimensional metals with spatially random antiferromagnetic interactions in a nonperturbative regime, using numerically exact high-performance, large-scale hybrid Monte Carlo simulation and exact averages over the quenched spatial randomness. Our simulations reproduce strange metals’ key experimental signature of linear-in- T resistivity with a universal “Planckian” transport scattering rate Γ tr ∼ k B T / ℏ that is independent of coupling constants. We further find that strange metallicity in these systems is not associated with a quantum critical point and, instead, arises from a phase of matter with gapless antiferromagnetic fluctuations that lacks long-range correlations and spans an extended region of parameter space: A feature that is also observed in several experiments. These gapless antiferromagnetic fluctuations take the form of spatially localized overdamped modes, whose presence could possibly be detected using recently developed nanoscale magnetometry methods. Our work paves the way for an eventual microscopic understanding of the role of spatial disorder in determining important properties of correlated-electron materials.
We consider the transport properties of a model of fermions scattered by a critical bosonic mode. The mode is overdamped and scattering is mainly in the forward direction. Such a mode appears at the quantum critical point for an electronic nematic phase transition and in gauge theories for a U(1) spin liquid. It leads to a short fermion lifetime, violating Landau's criterion for a Fermi liquid. In spite of this, transport can be described by a Boltzmann equation. We include momentum relaxation by umklapp scattering, supplemented by weak impurity scattering. We find that above a very low temperature which scales with ${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}}_{q}^{3}$, where ${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}}_{q}$ is the minimum umklapp scattering vector, the resistivity is linear in TTT with a coefficient which is independent of the amount of disorder. This picture holds until the temperature dependent part of the resistivity exceeds that due to impurity scattering. We compare the relaxation time approximation with an exact numerical solution of the Boltzmann equation. Surprisingly we find that, unlike the resistivity, the Hall coefficient strongly deviates from the relaxation time approximation and shows a strong reduction with increasing temperature. We comment on possible comparisons with experiments on high Tc{T}_{c}Tc​ cuprates.
Numerous unconventional superconductors such as cuprates, heavy-fermions, and twisted-bilayer graphene exhibit incoherent metallic transport above the superconducting critical temperature. This phenomenon cannot be described with Fermi-liquid theory and has presented a significant theoretical challenge to overcome. We utilize the two-dimensional Yukawa-SYK model of fermions with spatially random coupling to quantum-critical bosons to study transport in a manner which is non-perturbative in the coupling strength. Our work provides a microscopic model of quantum-critical incoherent metals and their concomitant properties, including a non-Boltzmann transport formula between resistivity and quasi-particle lifetime, violation of the Mott-Ioffe-Regel resistivity bound, and violation of the Kovtun-Son-Starinets shear viscosity to entropy density bound.