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There is a number of contradictory findings with regard to whether the theory describing easy-plane quantum antiferromagnets undergoes a second-order phase transition. The traditional Landau-Ginzburg-Wilson approach suggests a first-order phase transition, as there are two different competing order parameters. On the other hand, it is known that the theory has the property of self-duality which has been connected to the existence of a deconfined quantum critical point (DQCP). The latter regime suggests that order parameters are not the elementary building blocks of the theory, but rather consist of fractionalized particles that are confined in both phases of the transition and only appear - deconfine - at the critical point. Nevertheless, many numerical Monte Carlo simulations disagree with the claim of a DQCP in the system, indicating instead a first-order phase transition. Here we establish from exact lattice duality transformations and renormalization group analysis that the easy-plane CP1 antiferromagnet does feature a DQCP. We uncover the criticality starting from a regime analogous to the zero temperature limit of a certain classical statistical mechanics system which we therefore dub "frozen". At criticality our bosonic theory is dual to a fermionic one with two massless Dirac fermions, which thus undergoes a second-order phase transition as well., Comment: v2: published version includes Supplemental Material containing details of calculations and 2 figures; an error in original calculations was fixed; references added

The entanglement between momentum modes of a quantum field theory at different scales is not as well studied as its counterpart in real space, despite the natural connection with the Wilsonian idea of integrating out the high-momentum degrees of freedom. Here, we push such connection further by developing a novel method to calculate the R\'enyi and entanglement entropies between slow and fast modes, which is based on the Wilsonian effective action at a given scale. This procedure is applied to the perturbative regime of some scalar theories, comparing the lowest-order results with those from the literature and interpreting them in terms of Feynman diagrams. This method is easily generalized to higher-order or nonperturbative calculations. It has the advantage of avoiding matrix diagonalizations of other techniques., Comment: v2: minor changes (added a little more discussion on the applicability of the method to gauge theories), references added, 17 pages, 15 Figures; nearly matches published version

Electric-magnetic duality or S-duality, extending the symmetry of Maxwell&rsquo, s equations by including the symmetry between Noether electric charges and topological magnetic monopoles, is one of the most fundamental concepts of modern physics. In two-dimensional systems harboring Cooper pairs, S-duality manifests in the emergence of superinsulation, a state dual to superconductivity, which exhibits an infinite resistance at finite temperatures. The mechanism behind this infinite resistance is the linear charge confinement by a magnetic monopole plasma. This plasma constricts electric field lines connecting the charge&ndash, anti-charge pairs into electric strings, in analogy to quarks within hadrons. However, the origin of the monopole plasma remains an open question. Here, we consider a two-dimensional Josephson junction array (JJA) and reveal that the magnetic monopole plasma arises as quantum instantons, thus establishing the underlying mechanism of superinsulation as two-dimensional quantum tunneling events. We calculate the string tension and the dimension of an electric pion determining the minimal size of a system capable of hosting superinsulation. Our findings pave the way for study of fundamental S-duality in desktop experiments on JJA and superconducting films.

We establish a relation between entanglement in simple quantum mechanical qubit systems and in wormhole physics as considered in the context of the AdS/CFT correspondence. We show that in both cases, states with the same entanglement structure, indistinguishable by any local measurement, nevertheless are characterized by a different Berry phase. This feature is experimentally accessible in coupled qubit systems where states with different Berry phase are related by unitary transformations. In the wormhole case, these transformations are identified with a time evolution of one of the two throats., Comment: v1: 8 pages, 2 figures v2: improved the discussion of the gravity calculation, added other minor corrections; version matches the one accepted for publication in PRD

Two-dimensional quantum systems with competing orders can feature a deconfined quantum critical point, yielding a continuous phase transition that is incompatible with the Landau-Ginzburg-Wilson scenario, predicting instead a first-order phase transition. This is caused by the LGW order parameter breaking up into new elementary excitations at the critical point. Canonical candidates for deconfined quantum criticality are quantum antiferromagnets with competing magnetic orders, captured by the easy-plane CP$^1$ model. A delicate issue however is that numerics indicates the easy-plane CP$^1$ antiferromagnet to exhibit a first-order transition. Here we show that an additional topological Chern-Simons term in the action changes this picture completely in several ways. We find that the topological easy-plane antiferromagnet undergoes a second-order transition with quantized critical exponents. Further, a particle-vortex duality naturally maps the partition function of the Chern-Simons easy-plane antiferromagnet into one of massless Dirac fermions., v2: published version includes Supplemental Material containing details of calculations and 4 figures; references added

Dualities provide deep insight into physics by relating two seemingly distinct theories. Here we consider a duality between lattice fermions and bosons in (2+1) spacetime dimensions, relating free massive Dirac fermions to Abelian Chern-Simons Higgs (ACSH) bosons. To establish the duality we represent the exact partition function of the lattice fermions in terms of the writhe of fermionic worldlines. On the bosonic side the partition function is expressed in the writhe of the vortex loops of the particle-vortex dual of the ACSH Lagrangian. In the continuum and scaling limit we show these to be identical. This result can be understood from the closed fermionic worldlines being direct mappings of the ACSH vortex loops, with the writhe keeping track of particle statistics., Comment: 13 pages, 4 figures; v2 matches published version

The low-energy physics of two-dimensional Quantum Anomalous Hall insulators like (Hg,Mn)Te quantum wells or magnetically doped (Bi,Sb)Te thin films can be effectively described by two Chern insulators, including a Dirac, as well as a momentum-dependent mass term. Each of those Chern insulators is directly related to the parity anomaly of planar quantum electrodynamics. In this work, we analyze the finite temperature Hall conductivity of a single Chern insulator in 2+1 space-time dimensions under the influence of a chemical potential and an out-of-plane magnetic field. At zero magnetic field, this non-dissipative transport coefficient originates from the parity anomaly of planar quantum electrodynamics. We show that the parity anomaly itself is not renormalized by finite temperature effects. However, it induces two terms of different physical origin in the effective action of a Chern insulator, which is proportional to the Hall conductivity. The first term is temperature and chemical potential independent, and solely encodes the intrinsic topological response. The second term specifies the non-topological thermal response of conduction and valence band states. In particular, we show that the relativistic mass of a Chern insulator counteracts finite temperature effects, whereas its non-relativistic mass enhances these corrections. Moreover, we extend our analysis to finite magnetic fields and relate the thermal response of a Chern insulator therein to the spectral asymmetry, which is a measure of the parity anomaly in orbital fields.

The electromagnetic response of topological insulators and superconductors is governed by a modified set of Maxwell equations that derive from a topological Chern-Simons (CS) term in the effective Lagrangian with coupling constant $\kappa$. Here we consider a topological superconductor or, equivalently, an Abelian Higgs model in $2+1$ dimensions with a global $O(2N)$ symmetry in the presence of a CS term, but without a Maxwell term. At large $\kappa$, the gauge field decouples from the complex scalar field, leading to a quantum critical behavior in the $O(2N)$ universality class. When the Higgs field is massive, the universality class is still governed by the $O(2N)$ fixed point. However, we show that the massless theory belongs to a completely different universality class, exhibiting an exotic critical behavior beyond the Landau-Ginzburg-Wilson paradigm. For finite $\kappa$ above a certain critical value $\kappa_c$, a quantum critical behavior with continuously varying critical exponents arises. However, as a function $\kappa$ a transition takes place for $|\kappa| < \kappa_c$ where conformality is lost. Strongly modified scaling relations ensue. For instance, in the case where $\kappa^2>\kappa_c^2$, leading to the existence of a conformal fixed point, critical exponents are a function of $\kappa$., Comment: 9 pages, 3 figures. v2: extended version, added references. Version as published

Recently two fundamental topological properties of a magnetic vortex at the interface of a superconductor (SC) and a strong topological insulator (TI) have been established: the vortex carries both a Majorana zero-mode relevant for topological quantum computation and, for a time-reversal invariant TI, a charge of $e/4$. This fractional charge is caused by the axion term in the electromagnetic Lagrangian of the TI. Here we determine the angular momentum $J$ of the vortices, which in turn determines their mutual statistics. Solving the axion-London electrodynamic equations including screening in both SC and TI, we find that the elementary quantum of angular momentum of the vortex is $-n^2\hbar/8$, where $n$ is the flux quantum of the vortex line. Exchanging two elementary fluxes thus changes the phase of the wavefunction by $-\pi/4$., Comment: 6 pages, 2 figures. In this version a proposal for an experimental setup for detecting fractional statistics is added, including a schematic figure; references added. Version accepted for publication in PRL

Ferromagnets in contact with a topological insulator have become appealing candidates for spintronics due to the presence of Dirac surface states with spin-momentum locking. Because of this bilayer Bi$_2$Se$_3$-EuS structures, for instance, show a finite magnetization at the interface at temperatures well exceeding the Curie temperature of bulk EuS. Here we determine theoretically the effective magnetic interactions at a topological insulator-ferromagnet interface {\it above} the magnetic ordering temperature. We show that by integrating out the Dirac fermion fluctuations an effective Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction and magnetic charging interaction emerge. As a result individual magnetic skyrmions and extended skyrmion lattices can form at interfaces of ferromagnets and topological insulators, the first indications of which have been very recently observed experimentally., Comment: LaTex, 11 pages including supplemental information, 4 figures; v2: revised version accepted for publication in PRB RC; v3: Typos corrected, additional affiliation and grant acknowledgment included. Matches published version

We study the effective interactions between Dirac fermions on the surface of a three-dimensional topological insulator due to the proximity coupling to the magnetic fluctuations in a ferromagnetic or antiferromagnetic insulator. Our results show that the magnetic fluctuations can mediate attractive interactions between Dirac fermions of both Amperean and BCS type. In the ferromagnetic case, we find pairing between fermions with parallel momenta, so-called Amperean pairing, whenever the effective Lagrangian for the magnetic fluctuations does not contain a quadratic term. The pairing interaction also increases with increasing Fermi momentum, and is in agreement with previous studies in the limit of high chemical potential. If a quadratic term is present, the pairing is instead of BCS type above a certain chemical potential. In the antiferromagnetic case, BCS pairing occurs when the ferromagnetic coupling between magnons on the same sublattice exceeds the antiferromagnetic coupling between magnons on different sublattices. Outside this region in parameter space, we again find that Amperean pairing is realized., 9 pages, 6 figures, revised version

The electromagnetic response of topological insulators is governed by axion electrodynamics, which features a topological magnetoelectric term in the Maxwell equations. As a consequence magnetic fields become the source of electric fields and vice-versa, a phenomenon that is general for any material exhibiting a linear magnetoelectric effect. Axion electrodynamics has been associated with the possibility to create magnetic monopoles, in particular by an electrical charge that is screened above the surface of a magnetoelectric material. Here we explicitly solve for the electromagnetic fields in this geometry and show that while vortex-like magnetic screening fields are generated by the electrical charge their divergence is identically zero at every point in space which implies an absence of induced magnetic monopoles. Nevertheless magnetic image charges can be made explicit in the problem and even if no bound state with electric charges yielding a dyon arises, a dyon-like angular momentum follows from our analysis. Because of its dependence on the dielectric constant this angular momentum is not quantized, which is consistent with a general argument that precludes magnetic monopoles to be generated in Maxwell magnetoelectrics. We also solve for topologically protected zero modes in the Dirac equation induced by the point charge. Since the induced topological defect on the TI surface carries an electric charge as a result of the axion term, these zero modes are not self-conjugated., Comment: v4: 11 pages, 3 figures; extended published version

We study the interface physics of bipartite magnetic materials deposited on a topological insulator. Our study comprises antiferromagnets as well as ferrimagnets and ferromagnets with multiple magnetic moments per unit cell. If an energy gap is induced in the Dirac states on the topological surface, a topological magnetoelectric effect has been predicted. Here, we show that this effect can act in opposite directions on the two components of the magnet in a certain parameter region. Consequently, an electric field will mainly generate a staggered field rather than a net magnetization in the plane. This result is relevant for current attempts to detect the magnetoelectric effect experimentally, as well as for possible applications. We take a field-theoretic approach that includes the quantum fluctuations of both the Dirac fermions on the topological surface and the fermions in the surface layer of the magnet in an analytically solvable model. The effective Lagrangian and the Landau-Lifshitz equation describing the interfacial magnetization dynamics are derived.

The magnetoelectric effect predicted in topological insulators makes heterostructures that combine magnetic materials and such insulators promising candidates for spintronics applications. Here, we theoretically consider a setup that exhibits two well-separated interfaces between a topological insulator and a ferromagnetic insulator. We show that there is a topological magnetic dipole-dipole interaction stemming from long-range Coulomb interactions. We analytically derive the magnetization dynamics at the two interfaces and discuss how the long-range coupling can be applied to non-locally induce the formation of a magnetic texture at one interface by suitably gating the other interface., 5 pages, 3 figures; reference updated, minor changes to match published version

We consider a compact abelian Higgs model in 3+1 dimensions with a topological axion term and construct its dual theories for both bulk and boundary at strong coupling. The model may be viewed as describing a superconductor with magnetic monopoles, which can also be interpreted as a field theory of a topological Mott insulator. We show that this model is dual to a non-compact topological field theory of particles and vortices. It has exactly the same form of a model for superconducting cosmic strings with an axion term. We consider the duality of the boundary field theory at strong coupling and show that in this case $\theta$ is quantized as $-8\pi n/m$ where $n$ and $m$ are the quantum numbers associated to electric and magnetic charges. These topological states lack a non-interacting equivalent., Comment: 9.1 pages, 1 figure; v3: minor changes; references added; published version

The interface between a topological insulator and a ferromagnetic insulator exhibits an interesting interplay of topological Dirac electrons and magnetism. As has been shown recently, the breaking of time-reversal invariance by magnetic order generates a Chern-Simons term in the action, that in turn leads to a Berry phase and a magnetoelectric effect of topological origin. Here, we consider the system in the presence of long-range Coulomb interaction between the Dirac electrons, and find that the magnetoelectric effect of the fluctuating electric field becomes non-local. We derive a Landau-Lifshitz equation for the fluctuation-induced magnetization dynamics and the Euler-Lagrange equation of the Coulomb field by explicit one-loop calculations. Via the Coulomb interaction, divergences in the in-plane magnetization affect the magnetization dynamics over large distances in a topologically protected way., Comment: 6 pages, 25 References, 1 figure. To appear in Phys. Rev. B

We reveal the existence of a new type of topological Josephson effect involving type II superconductors and three-dimensional topological insulators as tunnel junctions. We predict that vortex lines induce a variant of the Witten effect that is the consequence of the axion electromagnetic response of the topological insulator: at the interface of the junction each flux quantum attains a fractional electrical charge of e/4. As a consequence, if an external magnetic field is applied perpendicular to the junction, the Witten effect induces an AC Josephson effect in absence of any external voltage. We derive a number of further experimental consequences and propose potential setups where these {quantized, flux induced, Witten} effects may be observed., Comment: 5 pages, 1 figure. Published version (PRL editor's suggestion)

Topological insulators are insulating materials that display conducting surface states protected by time-reversal symmetry, wherein electron spins are locked to their momentum. This unique property opens up new opportunities for creating next-generation electronic, spintronic and quantum computation devices. Introducing ferromagnetic order into a topological insulator system without compromising its distinctive quantum coherent features could lead to the realization of several predicted physical phenomena. In particular, achieving robust long-range magnetic order at the surface of the topological insulator at specific locations without introducing spin-scattering centres could open up new possibilities for devices. Here we use spin-polarized neutron reflectivity experiments to demonstrate topologically enhanced interface magnetism by coupling a ferromagnetic insulator (EuS) to a topological insulator (Bi2Se3) in a bilayer system. This interfacial ferromagnetism persists up to room temperature, even though the ferromagnetic insulator is known to order ferromagnetically only at low temperatures (

We study the effect of a Chern-Simons (CS) term in the phase structure of two different Abelian gauge theories. For the compact Maxwell-Chern-Simons theory, we obtain that for values $g=n/2\pi$ of the CS coupling with $n=\pm 1,\pm 2$, the theory is equivalent to a gas of closed loops with contact interaction, exhibiting a phase transition in the $3dXY$ universality class. We also employ Monte Carlo simulations to study the noncompact U(1) Abelian Higgs model with a CS term. Finite size scaling of the third moment of the action yields critical exponents $\alpha$ and $\nu$ that vary continuously with the strength of the CS term, and a comparison with available analytical results is made., Comment: RevTex4, 4 pages, 1 figure; v3: improvements and corrections made in the first part of the paper; references added. To be published in Europhysics Letters

Compact abelian gauge theories in $d=2+1$ dimensions arise often as an effective field-theoretic description of models of quantum insulators. In this paper we review some recent results about the compact abelian Higgs model in $d=2+1$ in that context., Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures; based on talk by F.S. Nogueira in the Aachen HEP2003 conference

We present a semi-perturbative approach which yields an infrared-stable fixed point in the Ginzburg-Landau for N=2, where $N/2$ is the number of complex components. The calculations are done in $d=3$ dimensions and below $T_c$, where the renormalization group functions can be expressed directly as functions of the Ginzburg parameter $\kappa$ which is the ratio between the two fundamental scales of the problem, the penetration depth $\lambda$ and the correlation length $\xi$. We find a charged fixed point for $\kappa>1/\sqrt{2}$, that is, in the type II regime, where $\Delta\kappa\equiv\kappa-1/\sqrt{2}$ is shown to be a natural expansion parameter. This parameter controls a momentum space instability in the two-point correlation function of the order field. This instability appears at a nonzero wave-vector ${\bf p}_0$ whose magnitude scales like $\sim\Delta\kappa^{\bar{\beta}}$, with a critical exponent $\bar{\beta}=1/2$ in the one-loop approximation, a behavior known from magnetic systems with a Lifshitz point in the phase diagram. This momentum space instability is argued to be the origin of the negative $\eta$-exponent of the order field., Comment: Author Information under http://www.physik.fu-berlin.de/~kleinert/institution.html . Latest update of paper (including all PS fonts) at http://www.physik.fu-berlin.de/~kleinert/333

We demonstrate that the Higgs mechanism in three-dimensional topological superconductors exhibits unique features with experimentally observable consequences. The Higgs model we discuss has two superconducting components and an axion-like magnetoelectric term with the phase difference of the superconducting order parameters playing the role of the axion field. Due to this additional term, quantum electromagnetic and phase fluctuations lead to a robust topologically non-trivial state that holds also in the presence of interactions. In this sense, we show that the renormalization flow of the topologically nontrivial phase cannot be continuously deformed into a topologically non-trivial one. One consequence of our analysis of quantum critical fluctuations, is the possibility of having a first-order phase transition in the bulk and a second-order phase transition on the surface. We also explore another consequence of the axionic Higgs electrodynamics, namely, the anomalous Hall effect. In the low frequency London regime an anomalous Hall effect is induced in the presence of an applied electric field parallel to the surface. This anomalous Hall current is induced by a Lorentz-like force arising from the axion term, and it involves the relative superfluid velocity of the superconducting components. The anomalous Hall current has a negative sign, a situation reminiscent of, but quite distinct in physical origin from the anomalous Hall effect observed in high-$T_c$ superconductors. In contrast to the latter, the anomalous Hall effect in topological superconductors is non-dissipative and occurs in the absence of vortices., Comment: v1: 5 pages, 2 figures; v2: 9 pages, 2 figures, extended revised version including new results

Motivated by recent experiments on EuS/Bi$_2$Se$_3$ heterostructures, we study the temperature dependent screening effects on the surface of a three-dimensional topological insulator proximate to a ferromagnetically ordered system. In general, we find that besides the chemical potential and temperature, the screening energy scale also depends on the proximity-induced electronic gap in an essential way. In particular, at zero temperature the screening energy vanishes if the chemical potential is smaller than the proximity-induced electronic gap. We show that at finite temperature, $T$, and/or chemical potential, $\mu$, the Chern-Simons (topological) mass, which is generated by quantum fluctuations arising from the proximity-effect, can be calculated analytically in the insulating regime. In this case the topological mass yields the Hall conductivity associated to edge states. We show that when the chemical potential is inside the gap the topological mass remains nearly quantized at finite temperature., Comment: 5 pages, 1 figure; v3: extended version; improved discussion of the Hall conductivity at finite temperature

The Ginzburg-Landau model with a Chern-Simons term is shown to possess two different scaling regimes depending on whether the mass of the scalar field is zero or not. In contrast to pure $\phi^4$ theories, the Ginzburg-Landau model with a topologically generated mass exhibits quite different properties in perturbation theory. Our analysis suggests that the two scalings could coincide at a non-perturbative level. This view is supported by a 1/N-expansion in the massive scalar field regime.

We consider a Ginzburg-Landau model for superconductivity with a Chern-Simons term added. The flow diagram contains two charged fixed points corresponding to the tricritical and infrared stable fixed points. The topological coupling controls the fixed point structure and eventually the region of first order transitions disappears. We compute the critical exponents as a function of the topological coupling. We obtain that the value of the $\nu$ exponent does not vary very much from the XY value, $\nu_{XY}=0.67$. This shows that the Chern-Simons term does not affect considerably the XY scaling of superconductors. We discuss briefly the possible phenomenological applications of this model., Comment: RevTex, 7 pages, 8 figures

Deconfined quantum criticality of two-dimensional $SU(2)$ quantum antiferromagnets featuring a transition from an antiferromagnetically ordered ground state to a so-called valence-bond solid state, is governed by a non-compact CP$^1$ model with a Maxwell term in 2+1 spacetime dimensions. We introduce a new perspective on deconfined quantum criticality within a field-theoretic framework based on an expansion in powers of $\epsilon=4-d$ for fixed number $N$ of complex matter fields. We show that in the allegedly weak first-order transition regime, a so-called conformal phase transition leads to a genuine deconfined quantum critical point. In such a transition, the gap vanishes when the critical point is approached from above and diverges when it is approached from below. We also find that the spin stiffness has a universal jump at the critical point., Comment: v2: 6 two-column pages, 2 figures; published version; this version includes finite-size scaling arguments and discussion of the N\'eel susceptibility; references added

A toy model of strongly correlated fermions is studied using Green function and functional integration methods. The model exhibits a metal-insulator transition as the interaction is varied. In the case of unrestricted hopping an equivalence of the model with the Hubbard model with infinite range hopping is established. The generalization to the case with N components is made.

The mechanism of dimensional transmutation is discussed in the context of Maxwell-Chern-Simons scalar QED. The method used is non-perturbative. The effective potential describes a broken symmetry state. It is found that the symmetry breaking vacuum is more stable when the Chern-Simons mass is different from zero. Pacs number: 11.10.Ef, 11.10.Gh., Comment: e-mail: nfuxsvai@lca1.drp.cbpf.br

We rederive non-perturbatively the Coleman-Weinberg expression for the effective potential for massless scalar QED. Our result is not restricted to small values of the coupling constants. This shows that the Coleman- Weinberg result can be established beyond the range of validity of perturbation theory. Also, we derive it in a manifestly renormalization group invariant way. It is shown that with the derivation given no Landau ghost singularity arises. The finite temperature case is discussed. Pacs number: 11.10.Ef,11.10.Gh.

A thin film of ferromagnetically ordered material proximate to the surface of a three-dimensional topological insulator explicitly breaks the time-reversal symmetry of the surface states. For an out-of-plane ferromagnetic order parameter on the surface, the parity is also broken, since the Dirac fermions become massive. This leads in turn to the generation of a topological Chern-Simons term by quantum fluctuations. On the other hand, for an in-plane magnetization the surface states remain gapless for the non-interacting Dirac fermions. In this work we study the possibility of spontaneous breaking of parity due to a dynamical gap generation on the surface in the presence of a local, Hubbard-like, interaction of strength $g$ between the Dirac fermions. A gap and a Chern-Simons term are generated for $g$ larger than some critical value, g_c, provided the number of Dirac fermions, $N$, is odd. For an even number of Dirac fermions the masses are generated in pairs having opposite signs, and no Chern-Simons term is generated. We discuss our results in the context of recent experiments in EuS/Bi_2Se_3 heterostructures., Comment: v3: Extended version; 11 pages, 2 figures, typos corrected. This version matches published version

We demonstrate that the low-energy effective theory for a deconfined quantum critical point in $d=2+1$ dimensions contains a leading order contribution given by the Faddeev-Skyrme model. The Faddeev-Skyrme term is shown to give rise to the crucial Maxwell term in the CP$^1$ field theory governing the deconfined quantum critical point. We derive the leading contribution to the spin stiffness near the quantum critical point and show that it exhibits a logarithmic correction to scaling of the same type as recently observed numerically in low dimensional models of quantum spin systems featuring a quantum critical point separating an antiferromagnetically ordered state from a valence bond solid state. These corrections, appearing away from upper or lower critical dimensions, reflect an emergent gauge symmetry of low-dimensional antiferromagnetic quantum spin systems., 5 pages, 1 figure; v2: Text improved. The final third of the preprint has been thoroughly revised

We consider a theory for a two-dimensional interacting conduction electron system with strong spin-orbit coupling on the interface between a topological insulator and the magnetic (ferromagnetic or antiferromagnetic) layer. For the ferromagnetic case we derive the Landau-Lifshitz equation, which features a contribution proportional to a fluctuation-induced electric field obtained by computing the topological (Chern-Simons) contribution from the vacuum polarization. We also show that fermionic quantum fluctuations reduce the critical temperature $\tilde T_c$ at the interface relative to the critical temperature $T_c$ of the bulk, so that in the interval $\tilde T_c\leq T, Comment: 4.5 pages, 1 figure; v2: Added some clarifications and improved presentation; references added; typos corrected; v3: Further improvements, published version

The deconfined quantum critical point of a two-dimensional $SU(N)$ antiferromagnet is governed by an Abelian Higgs model in $d=2+1$ spacetime dimensions featuring $N$ complex scalar fields. In this context, we derive for $2\ensuremath{\le}d\ensuremath{\le}4$ an exact formula for the central charge of the $U(1)$ current in terms of the gauge coupling at quantum criticality and compare it with the corresponding result obtained using gauge-gravity duality. There is a remarkable similarity precisely for $d=2+1$. In this case the amplitude of the current correlation function has the same form as predicted by the gauge-gravity duality. We also compare finite temperature results for the charge susceptibility in the large $N$ limit with the result predicted by the gauge-gravity duality. Our results suggest that condensed matter systems at quantum criticality may provide interesting quantitative tests of the gauge-gravity duality even in the absence of supersymmetry.

The gauge dependence of the renormalization group functions of the Ginzburg-Landau model is investigated. The analysis is done by means of the Ward-Takahashi identities. After defining the local superconducting order parameter, it is shown that its exponent $\beta$ is in fact gauge independent. This happens because in $d=3$ the Landau gauge is the only gauge having a physical meaning, a property not shared by the four-dimensional model where any gauge choice is possible. The analysis is done in both the context of the $\epsilon$-expansion and in the fixed dimension approach. It is pointed out the differences that arise in both of these approaches concerning the gauge dependence., Comment: RevTex, 3 pages, no figures; accepted for publication in PRB; this paper is a short version of cond-mat/9905276

Quantum electrodynamics in 2+1 dimensions is an effective gauge theory for the so called algebraic quantum liquids. A new type of such a liquid, the algebraic charge liquid, has been proposed recently in the context of deconfined quantum critical points [R. K. Kaul {\it et al.}, Nature Physics {\bf 4}, 28 (2008)]. In this context, we show by using the renormalization group in $d=4-\epsilon$ spacetime dimensions, that a deconfined quantum critical point occurs in a SU(2) system provided the number of Dirac fermion species $N_f\geq 4$. The calculations are done in a representation where the Dirac fermions are given by four-component spinors. The critical exponents are calculated for several values of $N_f$. In particular, for $N_f=4$ and $\epsilon=1$ ($d=2+1$) the anomalous dimension of the N\'eel field is given by $\eta_N=1/3$, with a correlation length exponent $\nu=1/2$. These values change considerably for $N_f>4$. For instance, for $N_f=6$ we find $\eta_N\approx 0.75191$ and $\nu\approx 0.66009$. We also investigate the effect of chiral symmetry breaking and analyze the scaling behavior of the chiral holon susceptibility, $G_\chi(x)\equiv$., Comment: 13 pages, 3 figures; published version

We discuss compact $2+1$ dimensional Maxwell electrodynamics coupled to fermionic matter with $N$ replica. For large enough $N$, the latter corresponds to an effective theory for the nearest neighbor $\mathrm{SU}(N)$ Heisenberg antiferromagnet, in which the fermions represent solitonic excitations known as spinons. Here, we show that the spinons are deconfined for $Ng{N}_{c}=36$, thus leading to an insulating state known as spin liquid. A previous analysis considerably underestimated the value of ${N}_{c}$. We show further that for $20lN\ensuremath{\leqslant}36$, there can be either a confined or a deconfined phase, depending on the instanton density. For $N\ensuremath{\leqslant}20$, only the confined phase exists. For the physically relevant value $N=2$, we argue that no paramagnetic phase can emerge since chiral symmetry breaking would disrupt it. In such a case, a spin liquid or any other nontrivial paramagnetic state (for instance, a valence-bond solid) is only possible if doping or frustrating interactions are included.

We derive an extended lattice gauge theory type action for quantum dimer models and relate it to the height representations of these systems. We examine the system in two and three dimensions and analyze the phase structure in terms of effective theories and duality arguments. For the two-dimensional case we derive the effective potential both at zero and finite temperature. The zero-temperature theory at the Rokhsar-Kivelson (RK) point has a critical point related to the self-dual point of a class of $Z_N$ models in the $N\to\infty$ limit. Two phase transitions featuring a fixed line are shown to appear in the phase diagram, one at zero temperature and at the RK point and another one at finite temperature above the RK point. The latter will be shown to correspond to a Kosterlitz-Thouless (KT) phase transition, while the former will be governed by a KT-like universality class, i.e., sharing many features with a KT transition but actually corresponding to a different universality class. On the other hand, we show that at the RK point no phase transition happens at finite temperature. For the three-dimensional case we derive the corresponding dual gauge theory model at the RK point. We show in this case that at zero temperature a first-order phase transition occurs, while at finite temperatures both first- and second-order phase transitions are possible, depending on the relative values of the couplings involved., Comment: 16 pages, 3 figures

We perform a renormalization group analysis of some important effective field theoretic models for deconfined spinons. We show that deconfined spinons are critical for an isotropic SU(N) Heisenberg antiferromagnet, if $N$ is large enough. We argue that nonperturbatively this result should persist down to N=2 and provide further evidence for the so called deconfined quantum criticality scenario. Deconfined spinons are also shown to be critical for the case describing a transition between quantum spin nematic and dimerized phases. On the other hand, the deconfined quantum criticality scenario is shown to fail for a class of easy-plane models. For the cases where deconfined quantum criticality occurs, we calculate the critical exponent $\eta$ for the decay of the two-spin correlation function to first-order in $\epsilon=4-d$. We also note the scaling relation $\eta=d+2(1-\phi/\nu)$ connecting the exponent $\eta$ for the decay to the correlation length exponent $\nu$ and the crossover exponent $\phi$., Comment: 4.1 pages, no figures, references added; Version accepted for publication in PRB (RC)

Quantum phase transitions in Mott insulators do not fit easily into the Landau-Ginzburg-Wilson paradigm. A recently proposed alternative to it is the so called deconfined quantum criticality scenario, providing a new paradigm for quantum phase transitions. In this context it has recently been proposed that a second-order phase transition would occur in a two-dimensional spin 1/2 quantum antiferromagnet in the deep easy-plane limit. A check of this conjecture is important for understanding the phase structure of Mott insulators. To this end we have performed large-scale Monte Carlo simulations on an effective gauge theory for this system, including a Berry phase term that projects out the $S=1/2$ sector. The result is a first-order phase transition, thus contradicting the conjecture., Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures. Stylistic changes, references added

Compact quantum electrodynamics in 2+1 dimensions often arises as an effective theory for a Mott insulator, with the Dirac fermions representing the low-energy spinons. An important and controversial issue in this context is whether a deconfinement transition takes place. We perform a renormalization group analysis to show that deconfinement occurs when N>N{sub c}=36/{pi}{sup 3}{approx_equal}1.161, where N is the number of fermion replica. For N

We show that roton-like excitations are thermally induced in a two-dimensional dilute Bose gas as a consequence of the strong phase fluctuations in two dimensions. At low momentum, the roton-like excitations lead for small enough temperatures to an anomalous phonon spectrum with a temperature dependent exponent reminiscent of the Kosterlitz-Thouless transition. Despite the anomalous form of the energy spectrum, it is shown that the corresponding effective theory of vortices describes the usual Kosterlitz-Thouless transition. The possible existence of an anomalous normal state in a small temperature interval is also discussed., 21 pages; 2 figures; v4: version accepted for publication in PRB; in this version Section IV is considerably extended

Compact quantum electrodynamics in 2 + 1 dimensions often arises as an effective theory for a Mott insulator, with the Dirac fermions representing the low-energy spinons. An important and controversial issue in this context is whether a deconfinement transition takes place. We perform a renormalization group analysis to show that deconfinement occurs when NNc = 36/pi3 approximately to 1.161, where N is the number of fermion replica. For NNc, however, there are two stable fixed points separated by a line containing a unstable nontrivial fixed point: a fixed point corresponding to the scaling limit of the noncompact theory, and another one governing the scaling behavior of the compact theory. The string tension associated with the confining interspinon potential is shown to exhibit a universal jump as N --Nc-. Our results imply the stability of a spin liquid at the physical value N = 2 for Mott insulators.

We consider the spin and charge Josephson current between two non-uniform Fulde-Ferrel-Larkin-Ovchinnikov superconductors with helimagnetic order. We demonstrate that the presence of the helimagnetic phase generates a spin Josephson effect and leads to additional contributions to both single-particle and Josephson charge current. It is shown that for such systems the AC effect differs more radically from the DC effect than in the case of a BCS superconductor with helimagnetic order considered earlier in the literature [M. L. Kuli\'c and I. M. Kuli\'c, Phys. Rev. B {\bf 63}, 104503 (2001)] where a spin Josephson current has also been found. In our system the most interesting effect occurs in the presence of an external magnetic field and in absence of voltage, where we show that the charge Josephson current can be tuned to zero while the spin Josephson current is non-vanishing. This provides a well controlled mechanism to generate a spin supercurrent in absence of charge currents., Comment: final version