Orbital Magnetization from Uniform and Periodic Magnetic Fields

Fuente: arXiv
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1. Verfasser: Huang, Chunli
Format: Preprint
Veröffentlicht: 2026
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author Huang, Chunli
author_facet Huang, Chunli
contents Magnetization is thermodynamically defined as the derivative of the grand potential with respect to a uniform magnetic field. However, a uniform magnetic field makes the kinetic momentum operators noncommuting and Landau-quantizes the electron motion. This changes the zero-field momentum-space to Landau-levels and raises a fundamental question: how can the thermodynamic response to a uniform field be reproduced by a linear-response calculation carried out in the momentum space of the zero-field problem? We address this question analytically in a quantum Hall ferromagnet that allows the orbital magnetization $M$ to be computed in a closed form. We first compute $M$ from the local Hartree--Fock projector response to a periodic magnetic field with zero net flux. We then compute $M$ from the derivative of the grand potential with respect to a uniform magnetic field along the Středa line. The two approaches give the same result, even though the first keeps the Hilbert space fixed while the second changes the Landau-level degeneracy. Their agreement suggests that we should view orbital magnetization as the energy associated with the spectral flow that gives rise to the Středa formula. Our work provides a tutorial introduction to orbital magnetization and its relation to the Středa formula.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2605_26889
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Orbital Magnetization from Uniform and Periodic Magnetic Fields
Huang, Chunli
Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics
Materials Science
Magnetization is thermodynamically defined as the derivative of the grand potential with respect to a uniform magnetic field. However, a uniform magnetic field makes the kinetic momentum operators noncommuting and Landau-quantizes the electron motion. This changes the zero-field momentum-space to Landau-levels and raises a fundamental question: how can the thermodynamic response to a uniform field be reproduced by a linear-response calculation carried out in the momentum space of the zero-field problem? We address this question analytically in a quantum Hall ferromagnet that allows the orbital magnetization $M$ to be computed in a closed form. We first compute $M$ from the local Hartree--Fock projector response to a periodic magnetic field with zero net flux. We then compute $M$ from the derivative of the grand potential with respect to a uniform magnetic field along the Středa line. The two approaches give the same result, even though the first keeps the Hilbert space fixed while the second changes the Landau-level degeneracy. Their agreement suggests that we should view orbital magnetization as the energy associated with the spectral flow that gives rise to the Středa formula. Our work provides a tutorial introduction to orbital magnetization and its relation to the Středa formula.
title Orbital Magnetization from Uniform and Periodic Magnetic Fields
topic Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics
Materials Science
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.26889