The S = 1/2 three-leg spin tube with the XXZ anisotropy is investigated using the numerical diagonalization and the phenomenological renormalization.It is found that as the XY-like anisotropy increases a quantum phase transition occurs at some critical point where the spin gap vanishes.The phase diagram is presented.
Recently some quantum spin systems on tube lattices, so called spin nanotubes, have been synthesized. They are expected to be interesting low-dimensional systems like the carbon nanotubes. As the first step of theoretical study on the spin nanotube, we investigate the S = 1/2 three-leg spin tube, which is the simplest one, using the numerical exact diagonalization (ED), combined with the recently developed level spectroscopy analysis. Particularly, we introduce the lattice distortion from the regular triangle unit to the isosceles one. We revealed that the S = 1/2 isosceles triangle spin tube exhibits the quantum phase transition between the spin gapped and gapless spin liquid phases.
Recently some quantum spin systems on tube lattices, so called spin nanotubes, have been synthesized. They are expected to be interesting low-dimensional systems like the carbon nanotubes. As the first step of theoretical study on the spin nanotube, we investigate the S=1/2 three-leg spin tube, which is the simplest one, using the numerical exact diagonalization and the finite-size scaling analysis. In our previous works the quantum phase transition between the spin-gap and gapless phases was revealed to occur due to the asymmetric lattice distortion. In addition the transition between the magnetization plateau and gapless phases at 1/3 of the saturation magnetization induced by the same distortion. Recently we found that the Tomonaga-Luttinger liquid is realized in the 1/3 magnetization plateau phase for the symmetric three-leg spin tube.
We investigate the S = 1/2 three-leg spin tube, which is the simplest spin nanotube, using the density matrix renormalization group (DMRG) and the numerical exact diagonalization (ED), conbined with a finite-size scaling analysis. Particularly, we intruduce the lattice distortion from the regular triangle unit to the isosceles one. In our previous works, we revealed that the S = 1/2 isosceles triangle spin tube exhibits following exotic quantum phenomena: the quantum phase transition between the spin gapped and gapless spin liquid phases, the 1/3 magnetization plateau due to two different mechanisms, and a new phase between the two plateau phases where the translational symmetry is spontaneously broken. We briefly review these results and show our new calculation of the expectation value of the magnetization at each site to specify the spin structure in the new field induced phase.
Recent developments of theoretical studies on spin nanotubes are reviewed, especially focusing on the S = 1/2 three-leg spin tube. In contrast to the three-leg spin ladder, the tube has a spin gap in the case of the regular-triangle unit cell when the rung interaction is sufficiently large. The effective theory based on the Hubbard Hamiltonian indicates a quantum phase transition to a gapless spin liquid due to the lattice distortion to an isosceles triangle. This is also supported by the numerical diagonalization and the density matrix renormalization group analyses. Furthermore, combining analytical and numerical approaches, we reveal several novel magnetic-field-induced phenomena: Néel, dimer, chiral and/or inhomogeneous orders, a new mechanism for the magnetization plateau formation, and others. The recently synthesized spin tube materials are also briefly introduced.