We propose an order parameter to characterize valence-bond-solid (VBS) states in quantum spin systems, given by the ground-state expectation value of a unitary operator appearing in the Lieb-Schultz-Mattis argument. We show that the order parameter changes the sign according to the configuration of the valence bonds. This allows us to determine the phase transition point in between different VBS states accurately. We demonstrate this theory in the bond-alternating Heisenberg chain and in the frustrated spin ladder.
We study quantum mixed-spin chains consisting of two integer spins
S1 and two half integer spins
S2 arrayed as ${S}^{1}\ensuremath{-}{S}^{1}\ensuremath{-}{S}^{2}\ensuremath{-}{S}^{2}$ in a unit cell with antiferromagnetic nearest-neighbor couplings
J1 (J2) between the spins of equal (different) magnitudes. By varying the ratio of two competing couplings, $\ensuremath{\alpha}{=J}_{2}{/J}_{1},$ the systems undergo successive quantum phase transitions between different valence-bond-solid (VBS) states accompanied by the vanishing of the energy gap. By a quantum Monte Carlo simulation with an improved loop cluster algorithm, we find one critical point ${\ensuremath{\alpha}}_{c}=0.762(1)$ in a $1\ensuremath{-}1\ensuremath{-}\frac{1}{2}\ensuremath{-}\frac{1}{2}$ chain and two critical points ${\ensuremath{\alpha}}_{c1}=0.479(1)$ and ${\ensuremath{\alpha}}_{c2}=1.318(1)$ in a $1\ensuremath{-}1\ensuremath{-}\frac{3}{2}\ensuremath{-}\frac{3}{2}$ chain, respectively. The calculated expectation values of the Lieb-Shultz-Mattis twist operator show the characteristic features of the single VBS transition in the $1\ensuremath{-}1\ensuremath{-}\frac{1}{2}\ensuremath{-}\frac{1}{2}$ chain and two successive VBS transitions in the $1\ensuremath{-}1\ensuremath{-}\frac{3}{2}\ensuremath{-}\frac{3}{2}$ chain at these critical points.
Most of the present understanding of the S=1 quantum spin chains displaying the Haldane gap is coming from the so-called valence-bond-solid (VBS) Hamiltonian which has an exactly known ground state. We show that this point is characterized by the onset of short-range incommensurate spin correlations in the one-parameter family of Hamiltonians ${\mathit{H}}_{\mathrm{\ensuremath{\theta}}}$= cos\ensuremath{\theta}${\ensuremath{\sum}}_{\mathit{i}}$
Si\ensuremath{\cdot}
Si+1+sin\ensuremath{\theta}${\ensuremath{\sum}}_{\mathit{i}}$ (
Si\ensuremath{\cdot}
Si+1)2. This gives a physical meaning to this special point. We establish precise values for the gaps, correlations, the string order parameter, and identify the VBS point as a disorder point in the sense of classical statistical mechanics. It is a quantum remnant of the classical transition between a ground state with long-range N\'eel order and a ground state with incommensurate long-range order. \textcopyright{} 1996 The American Physical Society.
We study spin-
1/2 chains with long-range power-law decaying unfrustrated (bipartite) Heisenberg exchange
Jr∝r−α and multi-spin interactions
Q favoring a valence-bond solid (VBS) ground state. Employing quantum Monte Carlo techniques and Lanczos diagonalization, we analyze order parameters and excited-state level crossings to characterize quantum states and phase transitions in the
(α,Q) plane. For weak
Q and sufficiently slowly decaying Heisenberg interactions (small
α), the system has a long-range-ordered antiferromagnetic (AFM) ground state, and upon increasing
α there is a continuous transition into a quasi long-range ordered (QLRO) critical state of the type in the standard Heisenberg chain. For rapidly decaying long-range interactions, there is transition between QLRO and VBS ground states of the same kind as in the frustrated
J1-
J2 Heisenberg chain. Our most important finding is a direct continuous quantum phase transition between the AFM and VBS states - a close analogy to the 2D deconfined quantum-critical point. In previous 1D analogies the ordered phases both have gapped fractional excitations, and the critical point is a conventional Luttinger Liquid. In our model the excitations fractionalize upon transitioning from the AFM state, changing from spin waves to deconfined spinons. We extract critical exponents at the AFM-VBS transition and use order-parameter distributions to study emergent symmetries. We find emergent O(
4) symmetry of the O(
3) AFM and scalar VBS order parameters. Thus, the order parameter fluctuations exhibit the covariance of a uniaxially deformed O(
4) sphere (an "elliptical" symmetry). This unusual quantum phase transition does not yet have any known field theory description, and our detailed results can serve to guide its construction. We discuss possible experimental realizations.
We study the
S=1/2 Heisenberg (
J) model on the two-dimensional (2D) square lattice in the presence of additional higher-order spin interactions (
Q) which lead to a valence-bond-solid (VBS) ground state. Using quantum Monte Carlo simulations, we analyze the thermal VBS transition. We find continuously varying exponents, with the correlation-length exponent $\ensuremath{\nu}$ close to the Ising value for large
Q/J and diverging when
Q/J approaches the quantum-critical point (the critical temperature ${T}_{c}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}0$). We identify the transition with a class of conformal field theories with charge
c=1 and critical exponents varying between those of the 2D Ising model and the Kosterlitz-Thouless (KT) fixed point. We find explicit evidence for KT physics by studying the emergence of
U(1) symmetry of the order parameter at
T=Tc when ${T}_{c}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}0$.
Various lattice geometries and boundary conditions are used to investigate valence-bond-solid (VBS) ordering in the ground state of an
S=1/2 square-lattice quantum spin model---the
J-
Q model, in which four- or six-spin interactions
Q are added to the standard Heisenberg exchange
J. Ground-state results for finite systems (with up to thousands of spins) are obtained using an unbiased projector quantum Monte Carlo method. It is found that great care has to be taken when extrapolating the order parameter to infinite lattice size, in particular, in cylinder geometry. Even though strong VBS order exists in two dimensions, and is established clearly with increasing system size on $L\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}L$ lattices (or ${L}_{x}\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{L}_{y}$ lattices with a fixed aspect ratio
Lx/Ly of order 1), only short-range VBS correlations are observed on long cylinders (when ${L}_{x}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}\ensuremath{\infty}$ at fixed
Ly). The correlation length increases with the cylinder width, until long-range order sets in at a ``critical'' width. This width is very large even when the 2D order is relatively strong. For example, for a system in which the order parameter is
70 of the largest possible value,
Ly=8 is required for ordering. Extrapolations of the VBS order parameter based on correlation functions (the square of the order parameter) for small $L\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}L$ lattices can also be misleading. For a
20-ordered system, results for
L up to $\ensuremath{\approx}$20 appear to extrapolate clearly to a vanishing order parameter, while for larger lattices the scaling behavior crosses over and extrapolates to a nonzero value (with exponentially small finite-size corrections). The VBS order parameter also exhibits interesting edge effects related the known emergent U(1) symmetry close to a ``deconfined'' critical point, which, if not considered properly, can lead to wrong conclusions for the thermodynamic limit. The observed finite-size behavior for small $L\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}L$ lattices and long cylinders is very similar to that predicted for a
Z2 spin liquid. The results therefore raise concerns about recent numerical work claiming
Z2 spin-liquid ground states in 2D frustrated quantum spin systems, in particular, the Heisenberg model with nearest and next-nearest-neighbor couplings. Based on the results presented so far, a VBS state in this system cannot be ruled out.