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arXiv:cond-mat/0005543 · Physical review. B, Condensed matter

Dynamics and transport in random quantum systems governed by strong-randomness fixed points

Olexei I. Motrunich, Kedar Damle, David A. Huse

Published Mar 13, 2001• 80 citations
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Abstract

We present results on the low-frequency dynamical and transport properties of random quantum systems whose low temperature $(T),$ low-energy behavior is controlled by strong-disorder fixed points. We obtain the momentum- and frequency-dependent dynamic structure factor in the random singlet (RS) phases of both spin-1/2 and spin-1 random antiferromagnetic chains, as well as in the random dimer and Ising antiferromagnetic phases of spin-1/2 random antiferromagnetic chains. We show that the RS phases are unusual ``spin metals'' with divergent low-frequency spin conductivity at $T=0,$ and we also follow the conductivity through ``metal-insulator'' transitions tuned by the strength of dimerization or Ising anisotropy in the spin-1/2 case, and by the strength of disorder in the spin-1 case. We work out the average spin and energy autocorrelations in the one-dimensional random transverse-field Ising model in the vicinity of its quantum critical point. All of the above calculations are valid in the frequency-dominated regime $\ensuremath{\omega}\ensuremath{\gtrsim}T,$ and rely on previously available renormalization group schemes that describe these systems in terms of the properties of certain strong-disorder fixed-point theories. In addition, we obtain some information about the behavior of the dynamic structure factor and dynamical conductivity in the opposite ``hydrodynamic'' regime $\ensuremath{\omega}<T$ for the special case of spin-1/2 chains close to the planar limit (the quantum $x\ensuremath{-}y$ model) by analyzing the corresponding quantities in an equivalent model of spinless fermions with weak repulsive interactions and particle-hole symmetric disorder.

DOI
10.1103/physrevb.63.134424

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We present results on the low-frequency dynamical and transport properties of random quantum systems whose low temperature (T),(T),(T), low-energy behavior is controlled by strong-disorder fixed points. We obtain the momentum- and frequency-dependent dynamic structure factor in the random singlet (RS) phases of both spin-1/2 and spin-1 random antiferromagnetic chains, as well as in the random dimer and Ising antiferromagnetic phases of spin-1/2 random antiferromagnetic chains. We show that the RS phases are unusual spin metals'' with divergent low-frequency spin conductivity at $T=0,$ and we also follow the conductivity through metal-insulator'' transitions tuned by the strength of dimerization or Ising anisotropy in the spin-1/2 case, and by the strength of disorder in the spin-1 case. We work out the average spin and energy autocorrelations in the one-dimensional random transverse-field Ising model in the vicinity of its quantum critical point. All of the above calculations are valid in the frequency-dominated regime \ensuremathω\ensuremath≳T,\ensuremath{\omega}\ensuremath{\gtrsim}T,\ensuremathω\ensuremath≳T, and rely on previously available renormalization group schemes that describe these systems in terms of the properties of certain strong-disorder fixed-point theories. In addition, we obtain some information about the behavior of the dynamic structure factor and dynamical conductivity in the opposite ``hydrodynamic'' regime \ensuremathω<T\ensuremath{\omega}<T\ensuremathω<T for the special case of spin-1/2 chains close to the planar limit (the quantum x\ensuremath−yx\ensuremath{-}yx\ensuremath−y model) by analyzing the corresponding quantities in an equivalent model of spinless fermions with weak repulsive interactions and particle-hole symmetric disorder.
We present the first results on the low-frequency dynamical and transport properties of random antiferromagnetic spin chains at low temperature (T). We obtain the momentum and frequency dependent dynamic structure factor in the random singlet (RS) phases of both spin-1/2 and spin-1 chains, as well as in the random dimer phase of spin-1/2 chains. We also show that the RS phases are unusual "spin-metals" with divergent low-frequency conductivity at T = 0, and follow the spin conductivity through "metal-insulator" transitions tuned by the strength of dimerization or Ising anisotropy in the spin-1/2 case and by the strength of disorder in the spin-1 case.
Quenched disorders can strongly influence the physical properties of quantum many-body systems. The real-space strong-disorder renormalization group (SDRG) analysis has shown that the spin-1/2 random Heisenberg chain is controlled by the infinite-randomness fixed point (IRFP) and forms a random singlet (RS) ground state. Motivated by recent thermal transport experiments on the quasi-one-dimensional antiferromagnet copper benzoate [B. Y. Pan et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 129, 167201 (2022)], we adapt the SDRG to study the low-temperature properties of the random Heisenberg chain by assuming that its low-energy excited states are captured by the parent Hamiltonian of the RS ground state as well. We find that while the specific heat coefficient and the uniform magnetic susceptibility scale as $C/T\ensuremath{\sim}{T}^{\ensuremath{-}{\ensuremath{\alpha}}_{c}}$ and $\ensuremath{\chi}\ensuremath{\sim}{T}^{\ensuremath{-}{\ensuremath{\alpha}}_{s}}$ with $0<{\ensuremath{\alpha}}_{c,s}<1$, indicating a divergent low-energy density of states, the thermal and the spin conductivities scale as $\ensuremath{\kappa}/T\ensuremath{\sim}T$ and ${\ensuremath{\sigma}}_{s}\ensuremath{\sim}T$, which implies a vanishing density of extended states in the low-energy limit. We believe that such a disparity in the thermodynamic and transport properties is a common feature of random systems controlled by the IRFP.
We study the spin transport properties of some disordered spin chains with a special focus on the distribution of the frequency-dependent spin conductivity. In the cases of interest here, the systems are governed by an effectively infinite disorder at low energies. A hallmark of this behavior is the wide discrepancy between the average and the typical values of some physical quantities, which are described by extremely broad distributions. We show that such is also the case of the spin conductivity, whose average value is metallic but whose typical one, the physically relevant quantity, is insulating. This solves the apparent contradiction between the prediction of a spin metallic phase of the spin-1/2 disordered XX chain and its known localized behavior (after a mapping to free fermions). Our results are based on analytical and numerical implementations of a strong-disorder renormalization group as well as exact diagonalization studies. We present our analyses in very general terms, valid for systems of any spin SSS value, but the cases of S=1/2S=1/2S=1/2 and 1 are studied in greater detail.
The effect of quenched disorder on the low-energy and low-temperature properties of various two- and three-dimensional Heisenberg models is studied by a numerical strong disorder renormalization-group method. For strong enough disorder we have identified two relevant fixed points, in which the gap exponent, $\ensuremath{\omega},$ describing the low-energy tail of the gap distribution $P(\ensuremath{\Delta})\ensuremath{\sim}{\ensuremath{\Delta}}^{\ensuremath{\omega}}$ is independent of disorder, the strength of couplings, and the value of the spin. The dynamical behavior of nonfrustrated random antiferromagnetic models is controlled by a singletlike fixed point, whereas for frustrated models the fixed point corresponds to a large spin formation and the gap exponent is given by $\ensuremath{\omega}\ensuremath{\approx}0.$ Another type of universality class is observed at quantum critical points and in dimerized phases but no infinite randomness behavior is found, in contrast to that of one-dimensional models.
We study by the strong disorder renormalization group (RG) method the low-energy properties of the one-dimensional Hubbard model with random-hopping matrix-elements tmin<t<tmax{t}_{min}<t<{t}_{max}tmin​<t<tmax​, and with random onsite Coulomb repulsion terms $0\ensuremath{\leqslant}{U}_{min}<U<{U}_{max}$. There are two critical phases, corresponding to an infinite randomness spin random singlet for strong interactions (Umin>tmax)({U}_{min}>{t}_{max})(Umin​>tmax​) and to an orbital infinite randomness fixed point for vanishing interactions $({U}_{max}∕{t}_{max}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}0)$. To each critical infinite randomness fixed point is connected a Griffiths phase, the correlation length, and dynamical exponent of which have well defined asymptotic dependences on the corresponding quantum control parameter. The theoretical predictions for the scaling in the vicinity of the critical points compare well to numerical RG simulations.
Using quantum Monte Carlo simulations, we study effects of disorder on the S=1/2S=1/2S=1/2 Heisenberg model with exchange constant JJJ on the square lattice supplemented by multispin interactions QQQ. It was found recently [L. Liu et al., Phys. Rev. X 8, 041040 (2018)] that the ground state of this $J\ensuremath{-}Q$ model with random couplings undergoes a quantum phase transition from the N\'eel antiferromagnetic state into a randomness-induced spin-liquid-like state that is a close analog to the well known random-singlet (RS) state of the Heisenberg chain with random couplings. This 2D RS state arises from a spontaneously symmetry-broken fourfold degenerate columnar valence-bond solid that is broken up by the disorder into finite domains, with spinons localized at topological defects. The interacting spinons form a critical collective many-body state without magnetic long range order but with the mean spin-spin correlations decaying with distance rrr as ${r}^{\ensuremath{-}2}$, as in the one-dimensional RS state. The dynamic exponent $z\ensuremath{\ge}2$, varying continuously with the model parameters. In this work, we further investigate the properties of the RS state in the $J\ensuremath{-}Q$ model with random QQQ couplings. We study the temperature dependence of the specific heat and various susceptibilities for large enough systems to reach the thermodynamic limit. We also analyze the size dependence of the critical magnetic order parameter and its susceptibility in the ground state. For all these quantities, we find consistency with the conventional quantum-critical scaling laws when the condition implied by the ${r}^{\ensuremath{-}2}$ form of the spin correlations is imposed. In particular, all the different quantities can be explained by the same value of the dynamic exponent zzz at fixed model parameters. We argue that the RS state identified in the $J\ensuremath{-}Q$ model corresponds to a generic renormalization group fixed point that can be reached in many quantum magnets with random couplings and that it has already been observed experimentally.