The antiferromagnetic (AFM) s=1 chain with biquadratic exchange coupling has recently been the subject of considerable attention, and some controversy. Theoretical arguments by Affleck that the model has dimerized character associated with a small spectral excitation gap have not received unanimous support from numerical calculations. For finite systems the field-dependent dispersion spectra are interesting and informative concerning the nature of the model. The excitations divide into two classes having very different character, corresponding to SzT even and SzT odd. Reflection symmetry about k=π/2 is apparent if states with a given total spin ST, rather than SzT, are plotted as a function of wavevector k, consistent with the Affleck prediction of dimerized character. The high degeneracy of the eigenstates reflects the existence of new symmetry operators which (a) shift the SzT value, (b) change wave vector k to π/2−k, and (c) shift the total spin quantum ST, of the energy eigenstates. Parkinson has recently observed that finite N states with SzT even and SzT≥2 map into states of the finite N s= 1/2 XXZ model at a special value of uniaxial anisotropy. Barber and Batchelor (unpublished) have shown the existence of an analytic mapping between states of the s=1 biquadratic chain and the 2D 9-state Potts model. They further show that all states of the Parkinson s= 1/2 XXZ model map into states of the s=1 biquadratic model. Hence, they find the ground state and first excited state energies exactly, and verify the Affleck picture. Their approach falls short of establishing complete integrability, however. Numerical studies on finite chains indicate that the T=0 magnetization curve is determined by the lowest-energy states for given SzT even, which are states of the s= 1/2 XXZ chain. Hence the magnetization curve of the s=1 AFM biquadratic chain is the same as the analytically known magnetization curve of the s= 1/2 XXZ chain!
The antiferromagnetic (AFM) s=1 chain with biquadratic exchange coupling has recently been the subject of considerable attention, and some controversy. Theoretical arguments by Affleck that the model has dimerized character associated with a small spectral excitation gap have not received unanimous support from numerical calculations. For finite systems the field-dependent dispersion spectra are interesting and informative concerning the nature of the model. The excitations divide into two classes having very different character, corresponding to SzT even and SzT odd. Reflection symmetry about k=π/2 is apparent if states with a given total spin ST, rather than SzT, are plotted as a function of wavevector k, consistent with the Affleck prediction of dimerized character. The high degeneracy of the eigenstates reflects the existence of new symmetry operators which (a) shift the SzT value, (b) change wave vector k to π/2−k, and (c) shift the total spin quantum ST, of the energy eigenstates. Parkinson has recently observed that finite N states with SzT even and SzT≥2 map into states of the finite N s= 1/2 XXZ model at a special value of uniaxial anisotropy. Barber and Batchelor (unpublished) have shown the existence of an analytic mapping between states of the s=1 biquadratic chain and the 2D 9-state Potts model. They further show that all states of the Parkinson s= 1/2 XXZ model map into states of the s=1 biquadratic model. Hence, they find the ground state and first excited state energies exactly, and verify the Affleck picture. Their approach falls short of establishing complete integrability, however. Numerical studies on finite chains indicate that the T=0 magnetization curve is determined by the lowest-energy states for given SzT even, which are states of the s= 1/2 XXZ chain. Hence the magnetization curve of the s=1 AFM biquadratic chain is the same as the analytically known magnetization curve of the s= 1/2 XXZ chain!
We compare the excitation spectra in the presence of a magnetic field of a number of integrable (exactly solvable) and nonintegrable quantum spin chains of various spin value s. The archetypal Bethe-ansatz integrable model is the s= 1/2 Heisenberg antiferromagnet (HB AFM). The excitation spectra are characterized by a soft mode which tracks across the Brillouin zone as the field increases to its saturation value. A class of Bethe-ansatz integrable models with SU(2) symmetry and the general spin s display excitation spectra qualitatively similar to the spin- 1/2 model above, for all s. A second class of Bethe-ansatz integrable models has SU(n) symmetry, where n=2s+1. Like the SU(2) integrable chains, these models have gapless excitation spectra, but the basic Brillouin zone changes from k=±2π/(2s+1)a. Studies show that periodicity of the SU(3) member of the class changes (increases) as the field increases to saturation. For both classes of integrable models, there is a single type of excitation pattern which is generically similar for all s. In the case of the other models, on the other hand, numerical studies show that the excitations divide into at least two distinct classes. In the case of the s=1 HB AFM, at high fields (corresponding to SzT=N,N−1, . . .,N/2) the excitations map approximately onto the complete set of excitations for s= 1/2 , whereas at low fields (SzT=N/2,N/2−1,. . .,0) the excitations have notable classical character. In the case of the s=1 model with pure biquadratic exchange, one set of excitations, corresponding to SzT even (SzT=N,N−2,. . .,2,0), again shows an approximate mapping to the complete excitation set for s= 1/2 . The second class of excitations, corresponding to SzT odd, are very different. They are symmetric about k=±π/2a for all SzT, i.e., correspond to a basic Brillouin zone of ±π/2a.
Recently there has been extensive theoretical interest in the remarkable Haldane prediction that spin-1 antiferromagnetic Heisenberg-like chains should display an energy gap between singlet ground state and excited continua. This behavior has been confirmed numerically, and it has been shown that the energy gap is of a magnitude to be observable experimentally. The phenomenon has captured the interest of experimental groups in neutron scattering and magnetism. A recent experimental study obtains very good experimental agreement with the theoretical T=0 magnetization curve obtained numerically by Parkinson and Bonner.1,2 An explanation will be provided for the unusual phase diagram and other anomalous features observed by the authors of Ref. 2. Numerical susceptibility studies of Heisenberg antiferromagnetic and general XXZ spin-1 chains will be presented, and discussed in terms of a novel quantum-classical cross-over phenomenon.2 Finally, a comparison will be made of T=0 magnetization isotherms for several spin-1 chains, including the Takhtajan–Babujian chain and the chain with pure biquadratic interactions.
An exact correspondence between the staggered biquadratic spin-1 antiferromagnetic chain and the quantum Hamiltonian limit of the nine-state Potts model is established for finite chains with free ends. For uniform interactions this equivalence is used (via a further exact mapping to a Bethe ansatz soluble XXZ model) to calculate exactly the infinite lattice values of the ground-state energy per site and the (nonzero) gap to the lowest-energy excited state. Periodic boundary conditions and the nature of the ground state as a function of bond alternation are also discussed.
Since the Heisenberg spin chain can be considered the simplest realistic model of magnetism, surprise and some degree of controversy have resulted from recent work of Haldane. The prediction is that quantum spin chains with half-integer spin should all display T=0 phase behavior equivalent to that of the Bethe Ansatz integrable (solvable) spin-1/2 quantum chain. More remarkably, the class of integer spin chains is predicted to show very different phase behavior. In particular, a gap should be present in the spectrum of a Heisenberg antiferromagnetic chain. This remarkable feature is counterintuitive in terms of accepted wisdom in magnetism (spin-wave theory, spin-Peierls theory) and critical phenomena. Consequently the vertification of the prediction is of great interest. A considerable amount of numerical work has been done, involving finite-chain, finite-size scaling, variational, Monte Carlo and other calculations, which will be reviewed here. The present consensus is that the weight of numerical evidence supports the prediction, although puzzling features still remain. Adding additional interactions to the basic Heisenberg Hamiltonian such as spin (XXZ) anisotropy, single-ion anisotropy, biquadratic exchange, and an applied magnetic field, generates a rich and complicated phase diagram for chains with spin >1/2, particularly for the case of integer spin. The s=1 phase diagram seems to display critical behavior of a type not previously encountered. A theoretical appraisal of the Haldane phenomenon will include a discussion of the possible role of nonintegrability. Mention will also be made of current progress in experimental investigation of the phenomenon, including problems that might be encountered. More recent work of Affleck has greatly generalized the field-theoretic mappings which underlay the original work of Haldane. A number of interesting problems have been mapped into quantum spin chains of various types, including field theoretic phenomena and the localization problem of the quantum Hall effect.
We calculate the ground-state energy and correlation length of the spin-1 antiferromagnetic biquadratic chain, as well as the excitation energy of the two lowest-lying states. We use the equivalence of this model to the spin-1/2 XXZ chain for a specific anisotropy parameter. The XXZ model is solvable by the Bethe ansatz. We solve the Bethe ansatz equations numerically and obtain the correlation length from the ground-state energy of finite chains by use of a finite-size scaling ansatz. We find a surprisingly large correlation length. We also perform quantum Monte Carlo simulations which show clearly that the biquadratic chain dimerizes.
The conformal anomaly c determines the universality class of a model system in statistical mechanics. The value of c characterizes both 2D classical models and their 1D quantum counterparts. The conformal anomaly may therefore be determined numerically for quantum spin chains using the relation: E0(N)≂E0(∞)−(NΔE/12)c(1/N2), where E0 (N) is the ground-state energy of an N-spin finite system, E0 (∞) is the ground-state energy in the thermodynamic limit, and ΔE is the energy gap between the ground state at k=0 and the first excited state of the dispersion curve at k=2π/N. The numerical approach is highly successful when tested on the integrable s= 1/2 Heisenberg antiferromagnetic XXZ chain and the integrable s=1 SU(2) model. The method gives c=1 to within 2% accuracy for the s=1 and (3)/(2) XY chains, placing them in the universality class of the 2D XY model. The result c=1 (2% accuracy) is obtained for the s= (3)/(2) Heisenberg antiferromagnetic chain, in agreement with the Haldane prediction. The s=1 pure antiferromagnetic biquadratic chain and the s=1 XXZ model with uniaxial anisotropy in the vicinity of the critical point Δ=Δ2 ∼1.15 −1.18 have also been studied.