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Joy, Aprem P. ORCID: 0000-0001-8589-1313 and Rosch, Achim ORCID: 0000-0002-6586-5721 (2024). Gauge field dynamics in multilayer Kitaev spin liquids. npj Quantum Materials, 9 (1). pp. 1-11. Springer Nature. ISSN 2397-4648

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Abstract

[Artikel-Nr.: 62] The Kitaev spin liquid realizes an emergent static gauge field with vison excitations coupled to Majorana fermions. We consider Kitaev models stacked on top of each other, weakly coupled by Heisenberg interaction ∝ J⊥. This inter-layer coupling breaks the integrability of the model and makes the gauge fields dynamic. Conservation laws and topology keep single visons immobile. However, an inter-layer vison pairs can hop with a hopping amplitude linear in J⊥ confined to the layer, but their motion is strongly influenced by the type of stacking. For AA stacking, an interlayer pair has a two-dimensional motion but for AB or ABC stacking, sheet conservation laws restrict its motion to a one-dimensional channel within the plane. For all stacking types, an intra-layer vison-pair is constrained to move out-of-plane only. Depending on the anisotropy of the Kitaev couplings Kx, Ky, Kz, the intra-layer vison pairs can display either coherent tunnelling or purely incoherent hopping. When a magnetic field opens a gap for Majorana fermions, there exist two types of intra-layer vison pairs - a bosonic and a fermionic one. Only the bosonic pair obtains a hopping rate linear in J⊥. We use our results to identify the leading instabilities of the spin liquid phase induced by the inter-layer coupling.

Item Type:	Article
Creators:	Creators Email ORCID ORCID Put Code Joy, Aprem P. UNSPECIFIED https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8589-1313 UNSPECIFIED Rosch, Achim UNSPECIFIED https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6586-5721 UNSPECIFIED
URN:	urn:nbn:de:hbz:38-814802
Identification Number:	10.1038/s41535-024-00673-z
Journal or Publication Title:	npj Quantum Materials
Volume:	9
Number:	1
Page Range:	pp. 1-11
Number of Pages:	11
Date:	18 August 2024
Publisher:	Springer Nature
ISSN:	2397-4648
Language:	English
Faculty:	Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences
Divisions:	Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences > Department of Physics > Institute for Theoretical Physics
['eprint_fieldname_oa_funders' not defined]:	Publikationsfonds UzK
Refereed:	Yes
URI:	http://kups.ub.uni-koeln.de/id/eprint/81480