Emergence of Gapless Quantum Spin Liquid from Deconfined Quantum Critical Point

Liu, Wen -Yuan1; Hasik, Juraj2; Gong, Shou-Shu3; Poilblanc, Didier2; Chen, Wei-Qiang4,5; Gu, Zheng-Cheng1

2022-09-19

10.1103/PhysRevX.12.031039

Physical Review X   Impact Factor & Quartile

2160-3308

Quantum spin liquids (QSLs) as novel phases of matter with long-range entanglement and deconfined quantum critical points (DQCPs) as descriptions for unconventional phase transitions between two ordered states beyond the standard paradigm, such as the transition between antiferromagnetic (AFM) and valence -bond solid (VBS) phases, are two representative emerging phenomena. These implications for under-standing correlated materials and developing theoretical frameworks for many-body physics are of crucial importance. Here, we show that a gapless QSL can naturally emerge from a DQCP. Via large-scale tensor network simulations of a square-lattice spin-1/2 frustrated Heisenberg model, both QSL-state and DQCP-type AFM-VBS transitions are observed. By tuning the coupling constants, the AFM-VBS transition vanishes, and instead, a gapless QSL phase gradually develops in between. Remarkably, along the phase boundaries of AFM-QSL and QSL-VBS transitions, we always observe the same correlation-length exponents, nu approximate to 1.0, which is intrinsically different from the one of the DQCP-type transition, indicating new types of universality classes. Our results explicitly demonstrate a new scenario for understanding the emergence of gapless QSL from an underlying DQCP. The discovered QSL phase survives in a large region of tuning parameters, and we expect its experimental realization in solid-state materials or quantum simulators.

SCI

English

NI Journal Papers

Corresponding

National Natural Science Foundation of China[N-CUHK427/18] ; French Research Council[A-CUHK402/18] ; National Natural Science Foundation of China[N-CUHK427/18] ; Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities["N-CUHK427/18","A-CUHK402/18"] ; Science, Technology and Innovation Commission of Shenzhen Municipality["11861161001","ANR-16-CE30-0025"] ; Shenzhen-Hong Kong Cooperation Zone for Technology and Innovation[ANR-18-CE30-0026-01] ; [11874078] ; [11834014] ; [ZDSYS20190902092905285] ; [2020B1515120100] ; [HZQB-KCZYB-2020050]

Physics

Physics, Multidisciplinary

WOS:000861590600001

AMER PHYSICAL SOC

Web of Science

1.Chinese Univ Hong Kong, Dept Phys, Hong Kong, Peoples R China
2.Univ Toulouse, CNRS, Lab Phys Theor, F-31062 Toulouse, France
3.Beihang Univ, Peng Huanwu Collaborat Ctr Res & Educ, Dept Phys, Beijing 100191, Peoples R China
4.Southern Univ Sci & Technol, Shenzhen Key Lab Adv Quantum Funct Mat & Devices, Shenzhen 518055, Peoples R China
5.Southern Univ Sci & Technol, Shenzhen Inst Quantum Sci & Engn, Dept Phys, Shenzhen 518055, Peoples R China

Liu, Wen -Yuan,Hasik, Juraj,Gong, Shou-Shu,et al. Emergence of Gapless Quantum Spin Liquid from Deconfined Quantum Critical Point[J]. Physical Review X,2022,12(3).

Liu, Wen -Yuan,Hasik, Juraj,Gong, Shou-Shu,Poilblanc, Didier,Chen, Wei-Qiang,&Gu, Zheng-Cheng.(2022).Emergence of Gapless Quantum Spin Liquid from Deconfined Quantum Critical Point.Physical Review X,12(3).

Liu, Wen -Yuan,et al."Emergence of Gapless Quantum Spin Liquid from Deconfined Quantum Critical Point".Physical Review X 12.3(2022).