Phonon dynamics in the site-disordered Kitaev spin liquid

Fuente: arXiv
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Autori principali: Dantas, Vitor, Kao, Wen-Han, Perkins, Natalia B.
Natura: Preprint
Pubblicazione: 2024
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_version_ 1866917707339792384
author Dantas, Vitor
Kao, Wen-Han
Perkins, Natalia B.
author_facet Dantas, Vitor
Kao, Wen-Han
Perkins, Natalia B.
contents The Kitaev honeycomb model provides a paradigmatic example of an exactly solvable quantum spin liquid (QSL), in which the spin degrees of freedom fractionalize into itinerant Majorana fermions coupled to a static background of $\mathbb{Z}_{2}$ gauge fluxes. This model has attracted significant attention in recent years due to the possibility of its experimental realization in some spin-orbit Mott insulators such as $ α$-RuCl$ _3 $. Among various experimental probes, ultrasound experiments measuring sound attenuation have emerged as a promising avenue to unveil the fractionalization of spins in these materials. Yet, candidate materials often deviate from the ideal Kitaev model due to the presence of disorder, leading to the emergence of localized modes governing low-energy physics. To provide further insight into the effects of these defect-induced modes on the phonon dynamics, we calculate the sound attenuation coefficient in the site-disordered Kitaev honeycomb model with an applied magnetic field, which breaks the time-reversal symmetry. In order to obtain a more accurate perspective on the temperature-dependent sound attenuation in this model, the impact of thermally excited fluxes on the disordered system is also analyzed.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2406_19140
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Phonon dynamics in the site-disordered Kitaev spin liquid
Dantas, Vitor
Kao, Wen-Han
Perkins, Natalia B.
Strongly Correlated Electrons
The Kitaev honeycomb model provides a paradigmatic example of an exactly solvable quantum spin liquid (QSL), in which the spin degrees of freedom fractionalize into itinerant Majorana fermions coupled to a static background of $\mathbb{Z}_{2}$ gauge fluxes. This model has attracted significant attention in recent years due to the possibility of its experimental realization in some spin-orbit Mott insulators such as $ α$-RuCl$ _3 $. Among various experimental probes, ultrasound experiments measuring sound attenuation have emerged as a promising avenue to unveil the fractionalization of spins in these materials. Yet, candidate materials often deviate from the ideal Kitaev model due to the presence of disorder, leading to the emergence of localized modes governing low-energy physics. To provide further insight into the effects of these defect-induced modes on the phonon dynamics, we calculate the sound attenuation coefficient in the site-disordered Kitaev honeycomb model with an applied magnetic field, which breaks the time-reversal symmetry. In order to obtain a more accurate perspective on the temperature-dependent sound attenuation in this model, the impact of thermally excited fluxes on the disordered system is also analyzed.
title Phonon dynamics in the site-disordered Kitaev spin liquid
topic Strongly Correlated Electrons
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2406.19140