Theories for understanding two-dimensional electronic systems, such as certain exotic states that could be useful for quantum computing, are not as well developed as their one-dimensional counterparts. A new mathematical analysis extends a successful theory for one-dimensional conductors---Luttinger liquid theory---to two dimensions, revealing novel properties of these systems.
Theories for understanding two-dimensional electronic systems, such as certain exotic states that could be useful for quantum computing, are not as well developed as their one-dimensional counterparts. A new mathematical analysis extends a successful theory for one-dimensional conductors---Luttinger liquid theory---to two dimensions, revealing novel properties of these systems.
We describe the relationship between quantum Hall edge states and the one-dimensional Luttinger liquid model. The Luttinger liquid model originated from studies of one-dimensional Fermi systems, however, it results that many ideas inspired by such a model can find applications to phenomena occurring even in higher dimensions. Quantum Hall systems which essentially are correlated two-dimensional electronic systems in a strong perpendicular magnetic field have an edge. It turns out that the quantum Hall edge states can be described by a one-dimensional Luttinger model. In this work, we give a general background of the quantum Hall and Luttinger liquid physics and then point out the relationship between the quantum Hall edge states and its one-dimensional Luttinger liquid representation. Such a description is very useful given that the Luttinger liquid model has the property that it can be bosonized and solved. The fact that we can introduce a simpler model of noninteracting bosons, even if the quantum Hall edge states of electrons are interacting, allows one to calculate exactly various quantities of interest. One such quantity is the correlation function which, in the asymptotic limit, is predicted to have a power law form. The Luttinger liquid model also suggests that such a power law exponent should have a universal value. A large number of experiments have found the quantum Hall edge states to show behavior consistent with a Luttinger liquid description. However, while a power law dependence of the correlation function has been observed, the experimental values of the exponent appear not to be universal. This discrepancy might be due to various correlation effects between electrons that sometimes are not easy to incorporate within a standard Luttinger liquid model.
We describe the relationship between quantum Hall edge states and the one-dimensional Luttinger liquid model. The Luttinger liquid model originated from studies of one-dimensional Fermi systems, however, it results that many ideas inspired by such a model can find applications to phenomena occurring even in higher dimensions. Quantum Hall systems which essentially are correlated two-dimensional electronic systems in a strong perpendicular magnetic field have an edge. It turns out that the quantum Hall edge states can be described by a one-dimensional Luttinger model. In this work, we give a general background of the quantum Hall and Luttinger liquid physics and then point out the relationship between the quantum Hall edge states and its one-dimensional Luttinger liquid representation. Such a description is very useful given that the Luttinger liquid model has the property that it can be bosonized and solved. The fact that we can introduce a simpler model of noninteracting bosons, even if the quantum Hall edge states of electrons are interacting, allows one to calculate exactly various quantities of interest. One such quantity is the correlation function which, in the asymptotic limit, is predicted to have a power law form. The Luttinger liquid model also suggests that such a power law exponent should have a universal value. A large number of experiments have found the quantum Hall edge states to show behavior consistent with a Luttinger liquid description. However, while a power law dependence of the correlation function has been observed, the experimental values of the exponent appear not to be universal. This discrepancy might be due to various correlation effects between electrons that sometimes are not easy to incorporate within a standard Luttinger liquid model.
We review the progress in the theory of one-dimensional (ID) Fermi liquids which has occurred over the past decade. The usual Fermi liquid theory, based on a quasi-particle picture, breaks down in one dimension because of the Peierls divergence in the particle-hole bubble, producing anomalous dimensions of operators, and because of charge-spin separation. Both are related to the importance of scattering processes transferring finite momentum. A description of the low-energy properties of gapless 1D quantum systems can be based on the exactly solvable Luttinger model which incorporates these features, and whose correlation functions can be calculated. Special properties of the eigenvalue spectrum, parameterized by one renormalized velocity and one effective coupling constant per degree of freedom, fully describe the physics of this model. Other gapless 1D models share these properties in a low-energy subspace. The concept of a "Luttinger liquid" implies that their low-energy properties are described by an effective Luttinger model, and constitutes the universality class of these quantum systems. Once the mapping on the Luttinger model is achieved, one has an asymptotically exact solution of the 1D many-body problem. Lattice models identified as Luttinger liquids include the 1D Hubbard model off half-filling, and variants such as the t-J- or the extended Hubbard model. In addition, 1D electron-phonon systems or metals with impurities can be Luttinger liquids, as well as the edge states in the quantum Hall effect.
For many years, the Luttinger liquid theory has served as a useful paradigm for the description of one-dimensional (1D) quantum fluids in the limit of low energies. This theory is based on a linearization of the dispersion relation of the particles constituting the fluid. Recent progress in understanding 1D quantum fluids beyond the low-energy limit is reviewed, where the nonlinearity of the dispersion relation becomes essential. The novel methods which have been developed to tackle such systems combine phenomenology built on the ideas of the Fermi-edge singularity and the Fermi-liquid theory, perturbation theory in the interaction strength, and new ways of treating finite-size properties of integrable models. These methods can be applied to a wide variety of 1D fluids, from 1D spin liquids to electrons in quantum wires to cold atoms confined by 1D traps. Existing results for various dynamic correlation functions are reviewed, in particular, the dynamic structure factor and the spectral function. Moreover, it is shown how a dispersion nonlinearity leads to finite particle lifetimes and its impact on the transport properties of 1D systems at finite temperatures is discussed. The conventional Luttinger liquid theory is a special limit of the new theory, and the relation between the two is explained.
Modern electronic devices and novel materials often derive their extraordinary properties from the intriguing, complex behavior of large numbers of electrons forming what is known as an electron liquid. This book provides an in-depth introduction to the physics of the interacting electron liquid in a broad variety of systems, including metals, semiconductors, artificial nano-structures, atoms and molecules. One, two and three dimensional systems are treated separately and in parallel. Different phases of the electron liquid, from the Landau Fermi liquid to the Wigner crystal, from the Luttinger liquid to the quantum Hall liquid are extensively discussed. Both static and time-dependent density functional theory are presented in detail. Although the emphasis is on the development of the basic physical ideas and on a critical discussion of the most useful approximations, the formal derivation of the results is highly detailed and based on the simplest, most direct methods.
In contrast to the well-known Fermi-liquid theory of three dimensions, interacting one-dimensional and quasi-one-dimensional systems of fermions are described at low energy by an effective theory known as Luttinger liquid theory. This theory is expressed in terms of collective many-body excitations that show exotic behavior such as spin-charge separation. Luttinger liquid theory is commonly applied on the premise that ``low energy'' describes both the spin and charge sectors. However, when the interactions in the system are very strong, as they typically are at low particle densities, the ratio of spin to charge energy may become exponentially small. It is then possible at very low temperatures for the single-spin excitation energy to be low compared to the characteristic single excitation charge energy, but still high compared to the characteristic spin energy. This energy window of near ground-state charge degrees of freedom but highly thermally excited spin degrees of freedom is called a spin-incoherent Luttinger liquid. The spin-incoherent Luttinger liquid exhibits a higher degree of universality than the Luttinger liquid and its properties are qualitatively distinct. In this Colloquium some recent theoretical developments in the field are detailed and experimental indications of such a regime in gated semiconductor quantum wires are described.