Photoexcitations in a 1D manganite model: From quasiclassical light absorption to quasiparticle relaxations
Thomas Köhler, Sangeeta Rajpurohit, Schumann, O., Fabian Biebl, Mohsen Sotoudeh, Kramer, S.C., Peter E. Blöchl, Stefan K. Kehrein, Salvatore R. Manmana
We investigate the behavior of 1D correlated systems following a photo-excitation by combining ab-initio methods, time-dependent matrix product state (MPS) approaches, analytical insights from quantum Boltzmann equations, and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to describe the dynamics on different time scales ranging from femtoseconds up to nanoseconds. This is done for manganite systems in the material class Pr1−xCaxMnO3. We derive one-dimensional ab-initio model Hamiltonians for which we compute the ground states at different values of the doping using MD simulations. At half doping, we obtain a magnetic microstructure of alternating dimers which we use as a starting point to formulate a one-dimensional Hubbard-type model. In this strongly correlated 1D system we address the formation of quasiparticles after photoexcitations. We introduce a quasiclassical model for the absorption process of light which takes into account the backaction of the electrons to the electromagnetic field and compare the results with the ones obtained with a Peierls substitution ansatz in which we neglect the backaction. Taking this effect into account leads to a stronger response since the emitted radiation can be re-absorbed by neighboring particles. We use the resulting state as starting point for the short-time dynamics which we obtain from 'numerically exact' MPS calculations. The dynamics is analyzed concerning the formation and lifetime of quasi-particles which form a starting point for the description of the relaxation process via a linearized quantum Boltzmann equation. In this way, our work constitutes a first step to building a unifying theoretical framework for the description of photoexcitations in strongly correlated materials over a wide range of time scales, capable of making predictions for ongoing experiments investigating pump-probe situations and unconventional photovoltaics.
We investigate the behavior of 1D correlated systems following a photo-excitation by combining ab-initio methods, time-dependent matrix product state (MPS) approaches, analytical insights from quantum Boltzmann equations, and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to describe the dynamics on different time scales ranging from femtoseconds up to nanoseconds. This is done for manganite systems in the material class Pr1−xCaxMnO3. We derive one-dimensional ab-initio model Hamiltonians for which we compute the ground states at different values of the doping using MD simulations. At half doping, we obtain a magnetic microstructure of alternating dimers which we use as a starting point to formulate a one-dimensional Hubbard-type model. In this strongly correlated 1D system we address the formation of quasiparticles after photoexcitations. We introduce a quasiclassical model for the absorption process of light which takes into account the backaction of the electrons to the electromagnetic field and compare the results with the ones obtained with a Peierls substitution ansatz in which we neglect the backaction. Taking this effect into account leads to a stronger response since the emitted radiation can be re-absorbed by neighboring particles. We use the resulting state as starting point for the short-time dynamics which we obtain from 'numerically exact' MPS calculations. The dynamics is analyzed concerning the formation and lifetime of quasi-particles which form a starting point for the description of the relaxation process via a linearized quantum Boltzmann equation. In this way, our work constitutes a first step to building a unifying theoretical framework for the description of photoexcitations in strongly correlated materials over a wide range of time scales, capable of making predictions for ongoing experiments investigating pump-probe situations and unconventional photovoltaics.
The emergence of order in materials with strongly-correlated electrons in out-of-equilibrium situations inspires a lot of new research, both experimental and theoretical. The main goal of this theoretical research project is to better understand related questions in the dynamics in a strongly correlated many-body state after a photoexcitation has occured. Such situations are usually not fully explainable in a mean-field picture nor analytically solvable. Hence, advanced numerical techniques are necessary. In this work, we investigate non-equilib- rium situations after photoexcitations. In order to model a hypothetical one-dimensional (1D) manganite, we chose the 1D Hubbard model with nearest-neighbor interaction and a staggered magnetic field. The photoexcitation is modeled in two different ways: First we investigate sud- den, local excitations, and afterwards we study a semi-classical approach by applying the Peierls substitution, which leads to a time-dependent Hamiltonian. All simulations are performed with an implementation of the time-dependent density-matrix renormalization group (DMRG), which is formulated by tensor-network states (TNSs), namely matrix-product states (MPSs) and matrix-product operators (MPOs). The framework used offers the possibility that every MPO can be externally described by finite-state machines (FSMs), hence it is extremely flexible. In this thesis, we explain how to perform exact FSM arithmetics, and how to compress the resulting FSMs. Based on MPSs and FSMs, a quantum-computer simulator (QCS) is introduced, which is mainly used as a universal tool for (MPS)-quantum- state manipulations. From the investigations with the sudden, local excitations, we learned that the electron-electron interaction is responsible for a rapid relaxation of the magnetic moment of the individual bands. Nevertheless, this relaxation can be stalled via a stronger magnetic microstructure. By applying a spin-selective photoexcitation via the Peierls substitution, we are able to induce a meta-stable charge-density wave (CDW) pattern if a magnetic microstructure is present. For a small, but finite interaction, we find a decay channel for the doublon-based part of the CDW, which still leaves a finite pattern. For large interaction, nearly no doublons are created by the photoexcitation. In the opposite limit, i.e., the non-interacting case, the two spin species are decoupled. Hence, in both limits the decay channel does not weaken the CDW and we find the pattern to be stable up to the times we can treat.
We investigate the evolution of a photoexcitation in correlated materials over a wide range of time scales. The system studied is a one-dimensional model of a manganite with correlated electron, spin, orbital, and lattice degrees of freedom, which we relate to the three-dimensional material ${\mathrm{Pr}}_{1\ensuremath{-}x}{\mathrm{Ca}}_{x}{\mathrm{MnO}}_{3}$. The ground-state phases for the entire composition range are determined and rationalized by a coarse-grained polaron model. At half doping a pattern of antiferromagnetically coupled Zener polarons is realized. Using time-dependent density-matrix renormalization group (tDMRG), we treat the electronic quantum dynamics following the excitation. The emergence of quasiparticles is addressed, and the relaxation of the nonequilibrium quasiparticle distribution is investigated via a linearized quantum-Boltzmann equation. Our approach shows that the magnetic microstructure caused by the Zener polarons leads to an increase of the relaxation times of the excitation.
Abstract Utilizing the time-dependent Lanczos method, we investigate the photoexcitation dynamics of the one-dimensional (1D) extended Peierls–Hubbard model at quarter filling. In equilibrium, it is well established that introducing the nearest-neighbour interaction V into the 1D Peierls–Hubbard model can lead to the formation of Mott–Hubbard excitons, which exhibit a characteristic frequency in the optical conductivity that is lower than the Mott gap. Ultrafast photoexcitation of this model gives rise to a transient metallic state for V < 2, characterized by several features, including a zero-frequency Drude peak in the post-pump optical conductivity, an increase in the density of charge carriers, and enhanced electron hopping between dimers. In contrast, when V ≥ 2, this metallic state is no longer observed, as photoinduced carriers bind to form excitons, thereby inhibiting metallic behavior. These results highlight a parallel between the optical excitation of the 1D extended Peierls–Hubbard model at quarter filling and that of the 1D extended Hubbard model at half filling, suggesting a universal mechanism governing their photoinduced responses.
The possibility to form excitons in photoilluminated correlated materials is central from fundamental and application oriented perspectives. In this paper we show how the interplay of electron-electron interactions and a magnetic superstructure leads to the formation of a peculiar spinful dark exciton, which can be detected in ARPES-type experiments and optical measurements. We study this by using matrix product states (MPS) to compute the time evolution of single-particle spectral functions and of the optical conductivity following an electron-hole excitation in a class of one-dimensional correlated band-insulators, simulated by Hubbard models with on-site interactions and alternating local magnetic fields. An excitation in only one specific spin direction leads to an additional band in the gap region of the spectral function only in the spin direction unaffected by the excitation and to an additional peak in the optical conductivity. As both is formed only after the excitation, this is interpreted as a dark exciton, which shows only in one spin direction. Recombination of the excitation happens on much longer time scales than the ones amenable to MPS. We discuss implications for experimental studies in correlated insulator systems.
We study the ultrafast dynamic process in photoexcited systems and find that the Franck-Condon or Landau-Zener tunneling between the photoexcited state and the ground state is abruptly blocked with increasing the state coupling from nonadiabatic to adiabatic limits. The blockage of the tunneling inhibits the photoexcited state from decaying into the thermalized state and results in an emergence of a metastable state, which represents an entanglement of electronic states with different electron-phonon coupling strengths. Applying this model to the investigation of photoexcited half-doped manganites, we show that the quantum critical transition is responsible for more than a three-order-of-magnitude difference in the ground-state recovery times following photoirradiation. This model also explains some elusive experimental results, such as photoinduced rearrangement of orbital order by the structural rather than electronic process and the structural bottleneck of a one-quarter period of the Jahn-Teller mode. We demonstrate that in the spin-boson model there exist unexplored regions not covered in the conventional phase diagram.
We theoretically investigate the dynamics of insulator-metal transition induced by light-pulse excitation in one-dimensional (1D) and two-dimensional (2D) Mott insulators. We adopt the Pariser-Parr-Pople model, and pump-probe signal is obtained by numerically calculating the time development of the state excited by a light pulse. In the 1D case, when photoexcitation density is below about 10%, an extremely small portion of the energy eigenstates dominates the optical process, and the spin-charge separation holds in these dominant energy eigenstates. As a result, the Mott gap and the short-range antiferromagnetic (AF) spin order are preserved, and the spin relaxation does not occur. When the density is above the value, a metallic state without the Mott gap is photogenerated, and the magnitude of the short-range AF spin order is significantly reduced by photoexcitation. This is consistent with the experimentally observed photoinduced Mott transition. Furthermore, the spin relaxation occurs in the metallic state. This photoinduced Mott transition is a manifestation of the spin-charge coupling in the intensely photoexcited states. In the 2D case, the spin and the charge degrees of freedom are coupled even in the weakly photoexcited states, and the characteristic crossover associated with the excitation density is not observed.