Based on the generalized valence bond picture, a Schwinger boson mean-field theory is applied to the symmetric SU(4) spin-orbital systems. For a two-leg SU(4) ladder, the ground state is a spin-orbital liquid with a finite energy gap, in good agreement with recent numerical calculations. In two-dimensional square and triangle lattices, the SU(4) Schwinger bosons condense at $(\ensuremath{\pi}/2,\ensuremath{\pi}/2)$ and $(\ensuremath{\pi}/3,\ensuremath{\pi}/3),$ respectively. Spin, orbital, and coupled spin-orbital static susceptibilities become singular at the wave vectors; the Bose condensation arises at twice this value. It is also demonstrated that there are spin, orbital, and coupled spin-orbital long-range orderings in the ground state.
To describe the spin-orbital energy gap formation in the one-dimensional symmetrically coupled spin-orbital model, we propose a simple mean-field theory based on an SU(4) constraint fermion representation of spins and orbitals. A spin-orbital gapped phase is formed due to a marginally relevant spin-orbital valence bond pairing interaction. The energy gap of the spin and orbital excitations grows extremely slowly from the SU(4)-symmetric point up to a maximum value and then decreases rapidly. By calculating the spin, orbital, and spin-orbital tensor static susceptibilities at zero temperature, we find a crossover from coherent to incoherent magnetic excitations as the spin-orbital coupling decreases from large to small values.
The one-dimensional spin-orbital model is studied by means of Abelian bosonization. We derive the low-energy effective theory which enables us to study small deviations from the SU(4) symmetric point. We show that there exists a massless region with algebraically decaying correlation functions,
∼cos(π/2a0x)x−3/2. When entering the massive phase, the system displays an approximate SO(6) enlarged symmetry with a dimerization type of ordering consisting in alternating spin and orbital singlets.
The one-dimensional spin-orbital model is studied by means of Abelian bosonization. We derive the low-energy effective theory which enables us to study small deviations from the SU(4) symmetric point. We show that there exists a massless region with algebraically decaying correlation functions $\ensuremath{\sim}\mathrm{cos}[(\ensuremath{\pi}{/2a}_{0})x]{x}^{\ensuremath{-}3/2}$. When entering the massive phase, the system displays an approximate SO(6) enlarged symmetry with a dimerization type of ordering consisting in alternating spin and orbital singlets.
The spin-orbital model for triply degenerate
t2g electrons on a triangular lattice has been shown to be dominated by dimers. The phase diagram contains both strongly resonating, compound spin-orbital dimer states and quasistatic, spin-singlet valence-bond (VB) states. To elucidate the nature of the true ground state in these different regimes, the model is mapped to a number of quantum dimer models (QDMs), each of which has three dimer colors. The generic multicolored QDM, illustrated for the two- and three-color cases, possesses a topological color structure, ``color vison'' excitations, and broad regions of resonating VB phases. The specific models are analyzed to gain further insight into the likely ground states in the superexchange and direct-exchange limits of the electronic Hamiltonian, and they suggest a strong tendency toward VB order in all cases.
We study a system of
N interacting triplons (the elementary excitations of a valence-bond solid) described by an effective interacting boson model derived within the bond operator formalism in order to determine the stability and the properties of many-triplon states. In particular, we consider the square lattice spin-$1/2\phantom{\rule{4pt}{0ex}}{J}_{1}\ensuremath{-}{J}_{2}$ antiferromagnetic Heisenberg model, focus on the intermediate parameter region where a quantum paramagnetic phase sets in, and consider the columnar valence-bond solid as a reference state. Within the bond operator theory, the Heisenberg model is mapped into an effective boson model in terms of triplet operators
t. The effective boson model is studied at the harmonic approximation and the energy of the triplons and the expansion of the triplon operators
b in terms of the triplet operators
t are determined. Such an expansion allows us to perform a second mapping and, therefore, determine an effective interacting boson model in terms of the triplon operators
b. We then consider systems with a fixed number
N of triplons and study the stability of many-triplon states within a mean-field approximation. We show that many-triplon states are stable, the lowest-energy ones are constituted by a small number of triplons, and the excitation gaps are finite. For
J2=0.48J1 and
0.52J1, we also calculate spin-spin and dimer-dimer correlation functions, dimer order parameters, and the bipartite von Neumann entanglement entropy within our mean-field formalism in order to determine the properties of the many-triplon state as a function of the triplon number
N. We find that the spin and the dimer correlations decay exponentially and that the entanglement entropy obeys an area law, regardless of the triplon number
N. Moreover, only for
J2=0.48J1, the spin correlations indicate that the many-triplon states with large triplon number
N might display a more homogeneous singlet pattern than the columnar valence-bond solid. We also comment on possible relations between the many-triplon states with large triplon number
N and gapped spin-liquid states.