Recent studies have revealed that the randomness-induced quantum spin liquid (QSL)-like state is stabilized in certain frustrated quantum magnets in two and three dimensions. In order to clarify the nature of this gapless QSL-like state, we investigate both zero- and finite-temperature properties of the random-bond one-dimensional (1D)
s=12 Heisenberg model with the competing nearest-neighbor and next-nearest-neighbor antiferromagnetic interactions,
J1 and
J2, by means of the exact diagonalization, density-matrix renormalization-group and Hams--de Raedt methods. We find that, on increasing the frustration
J2, the gapless nonmagnetic state stabilized in the unfrustrated model with
J2=0, the {\it unfrustrated\} random-singlet (RS) state, exhibits a phase transition into different gapless nonmagnetic state, the {\it frustrated\} RS state. This frustrated RS state in 1D has properties quite similar to the randomness-induced QSL-like state recently identified in 2D and 3D frustrated magnets exhibiting the
T-linear low-temperature (
T) specific heat, while the unfrustrated RS state is more or less specific to the unfrustrated 1D system exhibiting the
∼1(logT)3 low-
T specific heat. Universal features and the robustness against perturbations of the frustrated RS state are emphasized.
We present a detailed study of the critical properties of the two-dimensional (2D) XY model with maximal frustration in a square lattice. We use extensive Monte Carlo simulations to study the thermodynamics of the spin and chiral degrees of freedom, concentrating on their correlation functions. The gauge-invariant spin-spin correlation functions are calculated close to the critical point for lattice sizes up to 240\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}240; the chiral correlation functions are studied on lattices up to 96\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}96. We find that the critical exponents of the spin-phase transition are \ensuremath{\nu}=0.3069 and \ensuremath{\eta}=0.1915, which are to be compared with the unfrustrated XY model exponents \ensuremath{\nu}=1/2 and \ensuremath{\eta}=0.25. We also find that the critical exponents of the chiral transition are ${\ensuremath{\nu}}_{\mathrm{\ensuremath{\chi}}}$=0.875, 2\ensuremath{\beta}=0.1936, 2\ensuremath{\gamma}=1.82, and 2\ensuremath{\gamma}'=1.025, which are different from the expected 2D Ising critical exponents. The spin-phase transition occurs at
TU(1)=0.446, which is about 7% above the estimated chiral critical temperature
TZ2=0.4206. However, because of the size of the statistical errors, it is difficult to decide with certainty whether the transitions occur at the same or at slightly different temperatures. Finally, the jump in the helicity modulus in the fully frustrated system is found to be about 23% below the unfrustrated universal value. The most important consequence of these results is that the fully frustrated XY model appears to be in a novel universality class. Recent successful comparisons of some of these results with experimental data are also briefly discussed.
The seminal theoretical works of Berezinskii, Kosterlitz, and Thouless presented a paradigm for phase transitions in condensed matter that are driven by topological excitations. These transitions have been extensively studied in the context of two-dimensional XY models---coupled compasses---and have generated interest in the context of quantum simulation. Here, we use a circuit quantum-electrodynamics architecture to study the critical behavior of engineered XY models through their dynamical response. In particular, we examine not only the unfrustrated case but also the fully frustrated case which leads to enhanced degeneracy associated with the spin rotational
[U(1)] and discrete chiral (
Z2) symmetries. The nature of the transition in the frustrated case has posed a challenge for theoretical studies while direct experimental probes remain elusive. Here we identify the transition temperatures for both the unfrustrated and fully frustrated XY models by probing a Josephson junction array close to equilibrium using weak microwave excitations and measuring the temperature dependence of the effective damping obtained from the complex reflection coefficient. We argue that our probing technique is primarily sensitive to the dynamics of the
U(1) part.