Magnetically-induced electric polarization in an organo-metallic magnet

The coupling between magnetic order and ferroelectricity has been under intense investigation in a wide range of transition-metal oxides. The strongest coupling is obtained in so-called magnetically-induced multiferroics where ferroelectricity arises directly from magnetic order that breaks inversion symmetry. However, it has been difficult to find non-oxide based materials in which these effects occur. Here we present a study of copper dimethyl sulfoxide dichloride (CDC), an organo-metallic quantum magnet containing $S = 1/2$ Cu spins, in which electric polarization arises from non-collinear magnetic order. We show that the electric polarization can be switched in a stunning hysteretic fashion. Because the magnetic order in CDC is mediated by large organic molecules, our study shows that magnetoelectric interactions can exist in this important class of materials, opening the road to designing magnetoelectrics and multiferroics using large molecules as building blocks. Further, we demonstrate that CDC undergoes a magnetoelectric quantum phase transition where both ferroelectric and magnetic order emerge simultaneously as a function of magnetic field at very low temperatures

On Quantum Corrections to Chern-Simons Spinor Electrodynamics

We make a detailed investigation on the quantum corrections to Chern-Simons spinor electrodynamics. Starting from Chern-Simons spinor quantum electrodynamics with the Maxwell term $-1/(4\gamma){\int}d^3x F_{\mu\nu}F^{\mu\nu}$ and by calculating the vacuum polarization tensor, electron self-energy and on-shell vertex, we explicitly show that the Ward identity is satisfied and hence verify that the physical quantities are independent of the procedure of taking ${\gamma}{\to}{\infty}$ at one-loop and tree levels. In particular, we find the three-dimensional analogue of the Schwinger anomalous magnetic moment term of the electron produced from the quantum corrections.Comment: 16 pages, RevTex, no figures, A few typewritten errors have been correcte

Spontaneous Scale Symmetry Breaking in 2+1-Dimensional QED at Both Zero and Finite Temperature

A complete analysis of dynamical scale symmetry breaking in 2+1-dimensional QED at both zero and finite temperature is presented by looking at solutions to the Schwinger-Dyson equation. In different kinetic energy regimes we use various numerical and analytic techniques (including an expansion in large flavour number). It is confirmed that, contrary to the case of 3+1 dimensions, there is no dynamical scale symmetry breaking at zero temperature, despite the fact that chiral symmetry breaking can occur dynamically. At finite temperature, such breaking of scale symmetry may take place.Comment: 12 pages, no figures, uses RevTeX4-bet