We demonstrate how the term describing interaction between a single two-level atom and two cavity field modes may attain a Rashba form. As an outcome, cavity QED provides a testbed for studies of phenomena reminiscent of the spin-orbit induced anomalous Hall effect. The effective magnetic field, deriving from the non-Abelian gauge potentials rendered by the Rashba coupling, induces a transverse force acting on the phase space distributions. Thereby, the phase space distributions build up a transverse motion manifesting itself in spiral trajectories, rather than circular ones obtained for a zero magnetic field as one would acquire for the corresponding Abelian gauge potentials. Utilizing realistic experimental parameters, the phenomenon is numerically verified, ascertain that it should be realizable with current techniques.
Kubo formula gives a linear response of a quantum system to external fields, which are classical and weak with respect to the energy of the system. In this work, we take the quantum nature of the external field into account, and define a Hall conductance to characterize the linear response of a two-band system to the quantized field. The theory is then applied to topological insulators. Comparisons with the traditional Hall conductance are presented and discussed.
The spin Hall effect in a two-dimensional electron system on honeycomb lattice with both intrinsic and Rashba spin-orbit couplings is studied numerically. Integer quantized spin Hall conductance is obtained at zero Rashba coupling limit when electron Fermi energy lies in the energy gap created by the intrinsic spin-orbit coupling, in agreement with recent theoretical prediction. While nonzero Rashba coupling destroys electron spin conservation, the spin Hall conductance is found to remain near the quantized value, being insensitive to disorder scattering, until the energy gap collapses with in…
The quasi-quantized Hall effect (QQHE) is the three-dimensional (3D) counterpart of the integer quantum Hall effect (QHE),exhibited only by two-dimensional (2D) electron systems. It has recently been observed in layered materials, consisting of stacks of weakly coupled 2D platelets that are yet characterized by a 3D anisotropic Fermi surface. However, it is predicted that the quasi-quantized 3D version of the 2D QHE should occur in a much broader class of bulk materials, regardless of the underlying crystal structure. Here, we compare the observation of quasi-quantized plateau-like features in…
We present an analytical scaling theory for localization in a two-dimensional hierarchical network model that is designed to represent phase-coherent electron transport in the quantum-Hall regime. Scaling expressions for both the longitudinal and Hall resistivities are derived. In agreement with recent numerical studies, we find that the Hall resistivity is quantized in the metallic phase but diverges in the insulating phase. This suggests that the characteristics of a quantized Hall insulator can occur only in the presence of a strong dephasing mechanism.
We derive the low-energy theory of semi-quantized quantum Hall states, a recently observed class of gapless bilayer fractional quantum Hall states. Our theory shows these states to feature gapless quasiparticles of fractional charge coupled to an emergent Chern-Simons gauge field. These gapless quasiparticles can be understood as composites of electrons and Laughlin-like quasiparticles. We show that semi-quantized quantum Hall states exhibit perfect interlayer drag, host non-Fermi liquid physics, and serve as versatile parent states for fully gapped topological phases hosting anyonic excitatio…
Second-quantized approach to the study of Halperin state in fractional quantum Hall effect
College of Physics and Electronic Science, Hubei Normal University（湖北师范大学物理与电子科学学院）；Hubei Key Laboratory of Photoelectric Materials and Devices, Hubei Normal University（湖北师范大学光电材料与器件湖北省重点实验室）
The quantum Hall effect in a 2D electron system expresses a topological invariant, leading to a quantized conductivity. The thermal Hall and thermoelectric Nernst conductances in two dimensions are also reported to be quantized in specific systems. However, a comprehensive study of these quantities within one formalism for quantum Hall systems is so far elusive. In this work, we investigate the Hall, thermal Hall, and Nernst effects analytically and numerically in 2D and 3D. In addition to the quantized values for the Hall and thermal Hall conductances in two dimensions, we also find quasi-qua…
We show how a dc current can be generated in a Hall bar without applying a bias voltage. The Hall resistance $R_H$ that corresponds to this pumped current is quantized, just as in the usual integer quantum Hall effect (IQHE). In contrast with the IQHE, however, the longitudinal resistance $R_{xx}$ does not vanish on the plateaus, but equals the Hall resistance. We propose an experimental geometry to measure the pumped current and verify the predicted behavior of $R_H$ and $R_{xx}$.
We discuss a model where the relation between Hall potential $A_H$ = and gate potential $A_G$, which is manifested by the stepped QHE = curve, is described by an uncertainty relation $ΔA_H . = ΔA_G =3D B(\hbar/e)$.
We present a direct numerical evidence for reflection symmetry of longitudinal resistivity $ρ_{xx}$ and quantized Hall resistivity $ρ_{xy}$ near the transition between $ν=1$ quantum Hall state and insulator, in accord with the recent experiments. Our results show that a universal scaling behavior of conductances, $σ_{xx}$ and $σ_{xy}$, in the transition regime decide the reflection symmetry of $ρ_{xx}$ and quantization of $ρ_{xy}$, independent of particle-hole symmetry. We also find that in insulating phase away from the transition region $ρ_{xy}$ deviates from the quantization and diverges wi…
We study a generic two-dimensional hopping model on a honeycomb lattice with strong spin-orbit coupling, without the requirement that the half-filled lattice be a Topological Insulator. For quarter-(or three-quarter) filling, we show that a state with a quantized Hall conductance generically arises in the presence of a Zeeman field of sufficient strength. We discuss the influence of Hubbard interactions and argue that spontaneous ferromagnetism (which breaks time-reversal) will occur, leading to a quantized anomalous Hall effect.
We propose a surface-edge state theory for half quantized Hall conductance of surface states in topological insulators. The gap opening of a single Dirac cone for the surface states in a weak magnetic field is demonstrated. We find a new surface state resides on the surface edges and carries chiral edge current, resulting in a half-quantized Hall conductance in a four-terminal setup. We also give a physical interpretation of the half quantized conductance by showing that this state is the product of splitting of a boundary bound state of massive Dirac fermions which carries a conductance quant…
In this paper we propose that, quantized and nearly half-quantized intrinsic anomalous Hall effect can be induced by in-plane external magnetic field through the Zeeman coupling in non-magnetic 2D systems with sizeable spin-orbital coupling but without two-fold rotational symmetry. An analytical result is derived for 2D electron gas model with $C_{3v}$ symmetry. Based on the $\boldsymbol{k\cdot p}$ Hamiltonian derived from first principle calculations, we find that quantized and nearly half-quantized conductance can be observed in $\mathrm{Sb_2Te_3}$ thin film in the clean limit with strong in…
We study the effect of disorder on the anomalous Hall effect (AHE) in two-dimensional ferromagnets. The topological nature of AHE leads to the integer quantum Hall effect from a metal, i.e., the quantization of $σ_{xy}$ induced by the localization except for the few extended states carrying Chern number. Extensive numerical study on a model reveals that Pruisken's two-parameter scaling theory holds even when the system has no gap with the overlapping multibands and without the uniform magnetic field. Therefore the condition for the quantized AHE is given only by the Hall conductivity $σ_{xy}$ …
We demonstrate that the experimentally observed conductance oscillations through a gate-controlled quantum dot under quantized Hall conditions originate from a true Aharonov-Bohm phase that is acquired by the electrons as they co-propagate coherently through incompressible strips at a particular filling factor and enclose a certain magnetic flux within the dot. The absence of oscillations at certain filling factors is explained. The self-consistent screening theory of the integer quantized hall effect reveals the range of experimental parameters under which further intriguing oscillation patte…
A finite-temperature effective free energy of the boundary of a quantized thermal Hall system is derived microscopically from the bulk two-dimensional Dirac fermion coupled with a gravitational field. In two spatial dimensions, the thermal Hall conductivity of fully gapped insulators and superconductors is quantized and given by the bulk Chern number, in analogy to the quantized electric Hall conductivity in quantum Hall systems. From the perspective of effective action functionals, two distinct types of the field theory have been proposed to describe the quantized thermal Hall effect. One of …
In a previous work [Phys. Rev. Lett. 123, 047202 (2019)] a translationally invariant framework called quantum-electrodynamical Bloch (QED-Bloch) theory was introduced for the description of periodic materials in homogeneous magnetic fields and strongly coupled to the quantized photon field in the optical limit. For such systems, we show that QED-Bloch theory predicts the existence of fractal polaritonic spectra as a function of the cavity coupling strength. In addition, for the energy spectrum as a function of the relative magnetic flux we find that a terahertz cavity can modify the standard H…
The frictional drag between parallel two-dimensional electron systems has been measured in a regime of strong interlayer correlations. When the bilayer system enters the excitonic quantized Hall state at total Landau level filling factor ν_T=1 the longitudinal component of the drag vanishes but a strong Hall component develops. The Hall drag resistance is observed to be accurately quantized at h/e^2.
We consider Bloch electrons in the electromagnetic field and argue the relation between the Berry phase and the quantized Hall conductivity in three-dimension. The Berry phase we consider here is induced by the adiabatic change of the time-dependent vector potential. The relation has been shown in two-dimensional systems, and we generalize the relation in three-dimensional systems.
We report on our theoretical investigation considering the widths of quantized Hall plateaus (QHPs) depending on the density asymmetry induced by the large current within the out-of-linear response regime. We solve the Schrodinger equation within the Hartree type mean field approximation using Thomas Fermi Poisson nonlinear screening theory. We observe that the two dimensional electron system splits into compressible and incompressible regions for certain magnetic field intervals, where the Hall resistance is quantized and the longitudinal resistance vanishes, if an external current is imposed…
We study the current and charge distribution in a two dimensional electron system, under the conditions of the integer quantized Hall effect, on the basis of a quasi-local transport model, that includes non-linear screening effects on the conductivity via the self-consistently calculated density profile. The existence of ``incompressible strips'' with integer Landau level filling factor is investigated within a Hartree-type approximation, and non-local effects on the conductivity along those strips are simulated by a suitable averaging procedure. This allows us to calculate the Hall and the lo…
The dissipative response of a quantum system upon a time-dependent drive can be exploited as a probe of its geometric and topological properties. In this work, we explore the implications of such phenomena in the context of two-dimensional gases subjected to a uniform magnetic field. It is shown that a filled Landau level exhibits a quantized circular dichroism, which can be traced back to its underlying non-trivial topology. Based on selection rules, we find that this quantized circular dichroism can be suitably described in terms of Rabi oscillations, whose frequencies satisfy simple quantiz…
We show that an energy gap is induced in graphene by light-matter coupling to a circularly polarized photon mode in a cavity. Using many-body perturbation theory we compute the electronic spectra which exhibit photon-dressed sidebands akin to Floquet sidebands for laser-driven materials. In contrast with Floquet topological insulators, in which a strictly quantized Hall response is induced by light only for off-resonant driving in the high-frequency limit, the photon-dressed Dirac fermions in the cavity show a quantized Hall response characterized by an integer Chern number. Specifically for g…
We report a theoretical investigation of quantized spin-Hall conductance fluctuation of graphene devices in the diffusive regime. Two graphene models that exhibit quantized spin-Hall effect (QSHE) are analyzed. Model-I is with unitary symmetry under an external magnetic field $B\ne 0$ but with zero spin-orbit interaction, $t_{SO}=0$. Model-II is with symplectic symmetry where B=0 but $t_{SO} \ne 0$. Extensive numerical calculations indicate that the two models have exactly the same universal QSHE conductance fluctuation value $0.285 e/4π$ regardless of the symmetry. Qualitatively different fro…
Experimental and theoretical investigations on the integer quantized Hall effect in gate defined narrow Hall bars are presented. At low electron mobility the classical (high temperature) Hall resistance line RH(B) cuts through the center of all Hall plateaus. In contrast, for our high mobility samples the intersection point, at even filling factors ν= 2; 4 ..., is clearly shifted towards larger magnetic fields B. This asymmetry is in good agreement with predictions of the screening theory, i. e. taking Coulomb interaction into account. The observed effect is directly related to the formation o…
We extend Laughlin's magnetic-flux-threading argument to the quantized thermal Hall effect. A proper analogue of Laughlin's adiabatic magnetic-flux threading process for the case of the thermal Hall effect is given in terms of an external gravitational field. From the perspective of the edge theories of quantum Hall systems, the quantized thermal Hall effect is closely tied to the breakdown of large diffeomorphism invariance, that is, a global gravitational anomaly. In addition, we also give an argument from the bulk perspective in which a free energy, decomposed into its Fourier modes, is adi…
We present an experimental study of mesoscopic, two-dimensional electronic systems at high magnetic fields. Our samples, prepared from a low-mobility InGaAs/InAlAs wafer, exhibit reproducible, sample specific, resistance fluctuations. Focusing on the lowest Landau level we find that, while the diagonal resistivity displays strong fluctuations, the Hall resistivity is free of fluctuations and remains quantized at its $ν=1$ value, $h/e^{2}$. This is true also in the insulating phase that terminates the quantum Hall series. These results extend the validity of the semicircle law of conductivity i…
Using the Chalker-Coddington network model as a drastically simplified, but universal model of integer quantum Hall physics, we investigate the plateau-to-insulator transition at strong magnetic field by means of a real-space renormalization approach. Our results suggest that for a fully quantum coherent situation, the quantized Hall insulator with R_H approx. h/e^2 is observed up to R_L ~25 h/e^2 when studying the most probable value of the distribution function P(R_H). Upon further increasing R_L ->\infty the Hall insulator with diverging Hall resistance R_H \propto R_L^kappa is seen. The cr…
We investigate how a magnetic field induces one-dimensional edge channels when the two-dimensional surface states of three-dimensional topological insulators become gapped. The Hall effect, measured by contacting those channels, remains quantized even in situations where the θ-term in the bulk and the associated surface Hall conductivities, σ_{xy}^S, are not quantized due to the breaking of time-reversal symmetry. The quantization arises as the θ-term changes by \pm 2 πn along a loop around n edge channels. Model calculations show how an interplay of orbital and Zeeman effects leads to quantum…
We present precision measurements of the fractional quantized Hall effect where the quantized resistance $R^{[1/3]}$ in the fractional quantum Hall state at filling factor 1/3 was compared with a quantized resistance $R^{[2]}$, represented by an integer quantum Hall state at filling factor 2. A cryogenic current comparator bridge capable of currents down to the nanoampere range was used to directly compare two resistance values of two GaAs-based devices located in two cryostats. A value of $1 - (5.3 \pm 6.3) 10^{-8}$ (95% confidence level) was obtained for the ratio $(R^{[1/3]}/6R^{[2]})$. Thi…
Recently,a half-quantized Hall conductance (HQHC) plateau is experimentally observed in a semi-magnetic topological insulator heterostructure. However,the heterostructure is metallic with a nonzero longitudinal conductance, which contradicts the common belief that quantized Hall conductance is usually observed in insulators.In this work,we systematically study the surface transport of the semi-magnetic topological insulator with both gapped and gapless Dirac surfaces in the presence of dephasing process.In particular, we reveal that the HQHC is directly related to the half-quantized chiral cur…
We consider a two-dimensional system initialized in a topologically trivial state before its Hamiltonian is ramped through a phase transition into a Chern insulator regime. This scenario is motivated by current experiments with ultracold atomic gases aimed at realizing time-dependent dynamics in topological insulators. Our main findings are twofold. First, considering coherent dynamics, the non-equilibrium Hall response is found to approach a topologically quantized time averaged value in the limit of slow but non-adiabatic parameter ramps, even though the Chern number of the state remains tri…
We study the current and charge distribution of a two dimensional electron gas under strong perpendicular magnetic fields within the linear response regime. We show within a self-consistent screening theory that incompressible strips with integer values of local Landau-level filling factor exist for finite intervals of the magnetic field strength $B$. Within an essentially local conductivity model, we find that the current density in these $B$ intervals is confined to the incompressible strips of vanishing local longitudinal resistivity. This leads to vanishing longitudinal and exactly quantiz…
We report on a study of the quasielectron-quasihole and skyrmion-antiskyrmion bound states in the $ν=1$ quantum Hall regime. The short range attraction potential is assumed to be determined by a point magnetic impurity. The calculations are performed within the strong field approximation when the binding energy and the characteristic electron-electron interaction energy are smaller than the Landau level spacing. The Excitonic Representation technique is used in that case.
A profound manifestation of topologically non-trivial states of matter is the occurrence of fractionally charged elementary excitations. The quantum spin Hall insulator state is a fundamentally novel quantum state of matter that exists at zero external magnetic field. In this work, we show that a magnetic domain wall at the edge of the quantum spin Hall insulator carries one half of the unit of electron charge, and we propose an experiment to directly measure this fractional charge on an individual basis. We also show that as an additional consequence, a rotating magnetic field can induce a qu…
We discuss the spin relaxation of a strongly correlated two-dimensional (2D) electron gas (2DEG) in the quantized Hall regime when the filling factor is close to an odd-integer. As the initial state we consider a coherent deviation of the spin system from the ${\bf B}$ direction and investigate a break-down of this Goldstone-mode state due to the spin-orbit (SO) coupling and smooth disorder. The spin relaxation (SR) process is considered in terms of annihilation transitions in the system of spin excitons (magnons).
We discuss the role of direct Coulomb interaction on the bulk insulator of the integer quantized Hall effect that bridges the topological insulators and the conductance quantization. We investigate the magneto-transport properties of a two-dimensional electron system in the bulk, numerically, utilizing the self-consistent Thomas-Fermi-Poisson screening theory. Topologically distorted Hall bars with and without potential fluctuations are considered that comprises two identical inner contacts. Although these contacts change the topology, we show that quantized Hall effect survives due to redistr…
We argue that dynamics of gapless Fractional Quantum Hall Edge states is essentially non-linear and that it features fractionally quantized solitons propagating along the edge. Observation of solitons would be a direct evidence of fractional charges. We show that the non-linear dynamics of the Laughlin's FQH state is governed by the quantum Benjamin-Ono equation. Non-linear dynamics of gapless edge states is determined by gapped modes in the bulk of FQH liquid. The dispersion of edge modes is traced to the double boundary layer of FQH states.
In a GaAs/AlGaAs two-dimensional electron system with two occupied subbands, the experimentally determined phase diagram in the density-magnetic field plane exhibits rich topological features. Ring-like structures are observed at even integer filling factors, in the phase diagram. Even with the identical quantized Hall resistance values as those given rise by the ordinary integer quantum Hall effect due to the Landau level quantization; the activation energies of these states within the rings are much smaller. These ring structures cannot account for by the simple single particle picture. We a…
The quantum Hall effect (QHE) is a topologically protected phenomenon which has been observed in various systems. In experiments, the size of Hall bar device to realize the QHE is generally much larger than the phase coherence length, in which the quantum coherence of electrons is destroyed. Here, we theoretically study the influence of dephasing effect on the quantized Hall (QH) plateaus. We find that the QH plateau disappears in perfectly quantum coherent systems if the coupling between leads and central region is imperfect. The Hall resistance is very large and strongly oscillates instead o…
The Hall effect, the anomalous Hall effect and the spin Hall effect are fundamental transport processes in solids arising from the Lorentz force and the spin-orbit coupling respectively. The quantum versions of the Hall effect and the spin Hall effect have been discovered in recent years. However, the quantized anomalous Hall (QAH) effect has not yet been realized experimentally. In a QAH insulator, spontaneous magnetic moments and spin-orbit coupling combine to give rise to a topologically non-trivial electronic structure, leading to the quantized Hall effect without any external magnetic fie…
The half-quantized Hall conductance is characteristic of quantum systems with parity anomaly. Here we investigate topological and transport properties of a class of parity anomalous semimetals, in which massive Dirac fermions coexist with massless Dirac fermions in momentum space or real space, and uncovered a distinct bulk-edge correspondence that the half-quantized Hall effect is realized via the bulk massless Dirac fermions while the nontrivial Berry curvature is provided by the massive Dirac fermions. The spatial distribution of the edge current decays away from the boundary in a power law…
Quite generally, an insulator is theoretically defined by a vanishing conductivity tensor at the absolute zero of temperature. In classical insulators, such as band insulators, vanishing conductivities lead to diverging resistivities. In other insulators, in particular when a high magnetic field (B) is added, it is possible that while the magneto-resistance diverges, the Hall resistance remains finite, which is known as a Hall insulator. In this letter we demonstrate experimentally the existence of another, more exotic, insulator. This insulator, which terminates the quantum Hall effect series…
Thermoelectrics are promising by directly generating electricity from waste heat. However, (sub-)room-temperature thermoelectrics have been a long-standing challenge due to vanishing electronic entropy at low temperatures. Topological materials offer a new avenue for energy harvesting applications. Recent theories predicted that topological semimetals at the quantum limit can lead to a large, non-saturating thermopower and a quantized thermoelectric Hall conductivity approaching a universal value. Here, we experimentally demonstrate the non-saturating thermopower and quantized thermoelectric H…
We predict quantized Imbert-Fedorov, Goos-Hänchen, and photonic spin Hall shifts for light beams impinging on a graphene-on-substrate system in an external magnetic field. In the quantum Hall regime the Imbert-Fedorov and photonic spin Hall shifts are quantized in integer multiples of the fine structure constant $α$, while the Goos- Hänchen ones in multiples of $α^2$. We investigate the influence on these shifts of magnetic field, temperature, and material dispersion and dissipation. An experimental demonstration of quantized beam shifts could be achieved at terahertz frequencies for moderate …
In this paper we propose the quantized spin Hall effect (SHE) in the vortex state of a rotating p-wave paired Fermi system in an inhomogeneous magnetic field and in a weak periodic potential. It is the three dimensional extension of the spin Hall effect for a 3He-A superfluid film studied in Ref. [1]. It may also be considered as a generalization of the 3D quantized charge Hall effect of Bloch electrons in Ref. [2] to the spin transport. The A-phase of 3He or, more generally, the p-wave paired phase of a cold Fermi atomic gas, under suitable conditions should be a good candidate to observe the…
Two-dimensional topologically distinct insulators are separated by topological gapless points, which exist as Weyl points in three-dimensional momentum space. Slowly varying parameters in the two-dimensional Hamiltonian across two distinct phases therefore necessarily experiences the gap closing process, which prevents the intrinsic physical observable, the Hall response, from equilibrating. To equilibrate the Hall response, engineered laser noises were introduced at the price of destroying the quantum coherence. Here we demonstrate a new scheme to equilibrate the quantized Hall response from …
We construct useful sets of one-particle states in the quantum Hall system based on the von Neumann lattice. Using the set of momentum states, we develop a field-theoretical formalism and apply the formalism to the system subjected to a periodic potential. The topological formula of the Hall conductance written by the winding number of propagator is generalized to Bloch electrons. The relation between the winding number and the Chern number is clarified.
We study the emergent role of many-body effects on a two dimensional electron gas (2DEG) within the Thomas-Fermi-Poisson approximation, including both the exchange and correlation interactions in the presence of a strong perpendicular magnetic field. It is shown that, the indirect interactions widen the odd-integer incompressible strips spatially, whereas the even-integer filling factors almost remain unaffected.
The energy spectrum of massless Dirac fermions in graphene under two dimensional periodic magnetic modulation having square lattice symmetry is calculated. We show that the translation symmetry of the problem is similar to that of the Hofstadter or TKNN problem and in the weak field limit the tight binding energy eigenvalue equation is indeed given by Harper Hofstadter hamiltonian. We show that due to its magnetic translational symmetry the Hall conductivity can be identified as a topological invariant and hence quantized. We thus extend the idea of Quantum Hall Effect to magnetically modulate…
Experimental studies of the transitions from a primary quantum Hall (QH) liquid at filling factor 1/k (with k an odd integer) to the insulator have indicated a ``quantized Hall insulator'' (QHI) behavior: while the longitudinal resistivity diverges with decreasing temperature and current bias, the Hall resistivity remains quantized at the value $k h/ e^2$. We review the experimental results and the theoretical studies addressing this phenomenon. In particular, we discuss a theoretical approach which employs a model of the insulator as a random network of weakly coupled puddles of QH liquid at …
Topological magnetoelectric effect in a three-dimensional topological insulator is a novel phenomenon, where an electric field induces a magnetic field in the same direction, with a universal coefficient of proportionality quantized in units of $e^2/2h$. Here we propose that the topological magnetoelectric effect can be realized in the zero-plateau quantum anomalous Hall state of magnetic topological insulators or ferromagnet-topological insulator heterostructure. The finite-size effect is also studied numerically, where the magnetoelectric coefficient is shown to converge to a quantized value…
Current polarization induced rectification of the quantized Hall plateaus (QHPs) is studied within a Hartree type mean field approximation for asymmetrically depleted samples. We first investigate the existence of the current carrying incompressible strips (ISs), by solving the self-consistent equations, and their influence on magneto-transport (MT) properties. Next, the widths of the ISs are examined in terms of the steepness of the confining potential profile considering gate defined Hall bars. The corresponding MT coefficients are calculated using a local Ohm's law for a large fixed current…
