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arXiv:2212.13013 · Physical review. B./Physical review. B

Intrinsically interacting higher-order topological superconductors

Haoran Zhang, Jian-Hao Zhang, Zheng‐Cheng Gu, Rui-Xing Zhang, Shuo Yang

Published Aug 11, 2023• 16 citations
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Abstract

We propose a minimal interacting lattice model for two-dimensional class-$D$ higher-order topological superconductors with no free-fermion counterpart. A Lieb-Schultz-Mattis-type constraint has been proposed and applied to guide our lattice model construction. Our model exhibits a trivial product ground state in the weakly interacting regime, whereas, increasing electron correlations provoke a novel topological quantum phase transition to a ${D}_{4}$-symmetric higher-order topological superconducting state. The symmetry-protected Majorana corner modes are numerically confirmed with the matrix-product-state technique. Our theory paves the way for studying correlated higher-order topology with explicit lattice model constructions.

DOI
10.1103/physrevb.108.l060504

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We propose a minimal interacting lattice model for two-dimensional class-DDD higher-order topological superconductors with no free-fermion counterpart. A Lieb-Schultz-Mattis-type constraint has been proposed and applied to guide our lattice model construction. Our model exhibits a trivial product ground state in the weakly interacting regime, whereas, increasing electron correlations provoke a novel topological quantum phase transition to a D4{D}_{4}D4​-symmetric higher-order topological superconducting state. The symmetry-protected Majorana corner modes are numerically confirmed with the matrix-product-state technique. Our theory paves the way for studying correlated higher-order topology with explicit lattice model constructions.
Coupled-wire constructions have been widely applied to quantum Hall systems and symmetry-protected topological (SPT) phases. In this Letter, we use the coupled one-dimensional nonchiral Luttinger liquids with domain-wall structured mass terms as quantum wires to construct crystalline higher-order topological superconductors (HOTSCs) in two-dimensional (2D) interacting fermionic systems by two representative examples: a D4{D}_{4}D4​-symmetric class-D HOTSC and a C4{C}_{4}C4​-symmetric class-BDI HOTSC, with Majorana corner modes on the edge. Furthermore, based on the coupled-wire constructions, the quantum phase transitions between different phases of 2D HOTSCs by tuning the interwire coupling are investigated in a straightforward way.
Crystalline symmetry and time-reversal symmetry are commonly present in real superconducting materials. However, the topological classification of systems respecting these symmetries, particularly for interacting fermions, remains incomplete. In this work, we systematically classify time-reversal symmetry-protected crystalline topological superconductors in two-dimensional interacting fermionic systems using an explicit real-space construction. Among the resulting phases, we identify intrinsically interacting fermionic topological superconductors, i.e., phases that cannot be realized in either free-fermion or interacting bosonic systems. For spinless fermions with protecting symmetry group C4×Z2TC_4 \times Z_2^TC4​×Z2T​ or D4×Z2TD_4 \times Z_2^TD4​×Z2T​ (plus fermion parity), the intrinsic sector has a Z4Z_4Z4​ classification. The corresponding root phases generating this Z4Z_4Z4​ classification admit a transparent real-space construction in terms of decorated 1D blocks. These blocks are 1D fermionic symmetry-protected topological (FSPT) phases, realizable as double Majorana chains. We further find the corresponding Z4Z_4Z4​ spinless intrinsic phases for wallpaper groups p4p4p4, p4mp4mp4m, and p4gp4gp4g. We also find an additional Z2Z_2Z2​ intrinsically interacting phase for spinless fermions with wallpaper group pmpmpm, which is absent with the corresponding point-group symmetry alone. Moreover, these intrinsic phases naturally give rise to higher-order FSPT phases that support corner zero modes. Finally, we verify the crystalline equivalence principle for generic 2D interacting FSPT systems with both crystalline and internal symmetries.
In this paper, we present an exactly solvable model for two-dimensional topological superconductors with helical Majorana edge modes protected by time-reversal symmetry. Our construction is based on the idea of decorated domain walls and makes use of the Kasteleyn orientation on a two-dimensional lattice, which was used for the construction of the symmetry protected fermion phase with Z2{Z}_{2}Z2​ symmetry by Tarantino et al. and Ware et al. By decorating the time-reversal domain walls with spinful Majorana chains, we are able to construct a commuting projector Hamiltonian with zero correlation length ground state wave function that realizes a strongly interacting version of the two-dimensional topological superconductor. From our construction, it can be seen that the ${T}^{2}=\ensuremath{-}1$ transformation rule for the fermions is crucial for the existence of such a nontrivial phase; with T2=1{T}^{2}=1T2=1, our construction does not work.
Motivated by recently reported magnetic-field-induced topological phases in ultracold atoms and correlated Moir\'e materials, we investigate topological phase transitions in a minimal model consisting of interacting spinless fermions described by the Hofstadter model with Coulomb interaction on a square lattice. For interacting lattice Hamiltonians in the presence of a commensurate magnetic flux it has been demonstrated that the quantized Hall conductivity is constrained by a Lieb-Schultz-Mattis (LSM) type theorem due to magnetic translation symmetry. In this work, we revisit the validity of the theorem for such models and establish that a topological phase transition from a topological to a trivial insulating phase can be realized but must be accompanied by spontaneous magnetic translation symmetry breaking caused by charge ordering of the spinless fermions. To support our findings, the topological phase diagram for varying interaction strength is mapped out numerically with exact diagonalization for different flux quantum ratios and band fillings using symmetry indicators. We discuss our results in the context of the LSM-type theorem.
A wide variety of higher-order symmetry protected topological phase(HOSPT) with gapless corners or hinges had been proposed as a descendant of topological crystalline insulator protected by spatial symmetry. In this work, we address a new class of higher-order topological state which does not require crystalline symmetries but instead relies on subsystem symmetry for protection. We propose several strong interacting models with gapless hinge or corner based on a `decorated hinge-wall condensate' picture. The hinge-wall, which appears as the defect configuration of Z2Z_2Z2​ paramagnet is decorated with lower-dim SPT state. Such unique hinge-wall decoration structure leads to gapped surfaces separated by gapless hinges. The non-trivial nature of the hinge modes can be captured by a 1+11+11+1D conformal field theory with a Wess-Zumino-Witten term. Besides, we establish a no-go theorem to demonstrate the ungappable nature of the hinge by making a connection between generalized Lieb-Schultz-Mattis theorem and the boundary anomaly of HOSPT state. This universal correspondence engenders a comprehensive criterion to determine the existence of HOSPT under certain symmetry regardless of the microscopic Hamiltonian.
The natural existence of crystalline symmetry in real materials manifests the importance of understanding crystalline symmetry-protected topological phases, especially for interacting systems. In this paper, we systematically construct and classify all the point-group crystalline topological superconductors and insulators in three-dimensional (3D) interacting fermion systems using the novel concept of a topological crystal. The corresponding higher-order topological surface theory can also be systematically studied via higher-order bulk-boundary correspondence. In particular, we discover several intrinsically interacting topological phases that cannot be realized in any free-fermion systems. Moreover, the crystalline equivalence principle for 3D interacting fermionic systems is also verified, with an additional subtle “twist” on the spin of fermions.