The bound states of two electrons in the adiabatic Holstein-Hubbard model are studied numerically in one and two dimensions from the anticontinuous limit. This model involves a competition between a local electron-phonon coupling (with a classical lattice) which tends to form pairs of electrons and the repulsive Hubbard interaction
U≥0 which tends to break them. In 1D, the ground-state always consists in a pair of localized polarons in a singlet state. They are located at the same site for U=0. Increasing U, there is a first order transition at which the bipolaron becomes a spin singlet pair of two polarons bounded by a magnetic interaction. The pinning mode of the bipolaron soften in the vicinity of this transition leading to a higher mobility of the bipolaron which is tested numerically. In 2D, and for any
U, the electron-phonon coupling needs to be large enough in order to form small polarons or bipolarons instead of extended electrons. We calculate the phase diagram of the bipolaron involving first order transitions lines with a triple point. A pair of polarons can form three types of bipolarons: a) on a single site at small
U, b) a spin singlet state on two nearest neighbor sites for larger
U as in 1D and c) a new intermediate state obtained as the resonant combination of four 2-sites singlet states sharing a central site, called quadrisinglet. The breathing and pinning internal modes of bipolarons in 2D generally only weakly soften and thus, they are practically not mobile. On the opposite, in the vicinity of the triple point involving the quadrisinglet, both modes exhibit a significant softening. However, it was not sufficient for allowing the existence of a classical mobile bipolaron (at least in that model).
At large electron-phonon coupling, the phonon of the Holstein-Hubbard model can be (generally) treated classically. Exact results can be obtained for this model at any band filling and any finite dimension where the Hubbard term with coefficient U is treated rigorously. The existence of chaotic bipolaronic states is proven when U is smaller than a certain value Uc and for an electron-phonon coupling k sufficiently large. The existence of magnetic polaronic states is also proven for positive U and k sufficiently large. For 0<U<Uc, there exists an overlap region with chaotic mixed polaronic-bipolaronic states. There is a region for U=Uc/2 and large k of special interest, where the bipolarons in their ground-state become singlet pairs of polarons bounded by a magnetic resonance. Then, the Peierls-Nabarro barrier which usually pins polarons and bipolarons to the lattice depresses to almost zero and the validity of the classical lattice approximation breaks down so that the initial exact results do not apply in that specific region. The formation of a superconducting state with possibly a high critical temperature, is then conjectured at a large coupling k in a narrow domain in-between the two insulating domains corresponding to Bipolaronic Charge Density Waves and to magnetic Polaronic Spin Density Waves respectively.
Abstract. The spatially localized bound states of two electrons in the adiabatic two-dimensional Holstein-Hubbard model on a square lattice are investigated both numerically and analytically. The interplay between the electron-phonon coupling g, which tends to form bipolarons and the repulsive Hubbard interaction υ ≥ 0, which tends to break them, generates many different ground-states. There are four domains in the g,υ phase diagram delimited by first order transition lines. Except for the domain at weak electronphonon coupling (small g) where the electrons remain free, the electrons form bipolarons which can 1) be mostly located on a single site (small υ, large g); 2) be an anisotropic pair of polarons lying on two neighboring sites in the magnetic singlet state (large υ, large g); or 3) be a ”quadrisinglet state ” which is the superposition of 4 electronic singlets with a common central site. This quadrisinglet bipolaron is the most stable in a small central domain in between the three other phases. The pinning modes and the Peierls-Nabarro barrier of each of these bipolarons are calculated and the barrier is found to be strongly depressed in the region of stability of the quadrisinglet bipolaron. PACS. 71.10.Fd Lattice fermion models (Hubbard model, etc.) – 71.38.+i Polarons and electron phonon interactions – 74.20.Mn Nonconventional mechanisms (spin fluctuations, polarons and bipolarons, resonating valence bond model, anyon mechanism, marginal Fermi liquid, Luttinger liquid, etc.) – 74.25.Jb Electronic structure