Effects of Core-Hole Screening on Spin-Polarised Auger Spectra from Ferromagnetic Nickel

We calculate the spin- and temperature-dependent local density of states for ferromagnetic Ni in the presence of a core hole at a distinguished site in the lattice. Correlations among the valence electrons and between valence and core electrons are described within a multi-band Hubbard model which is treated by means of second-order perturbation theory around the Hartree-Fock solution. The core-hole potential causes strong screening effects in the Ni valence band. The local magnetic moment is found to be decreased by a factor 5-6. The consequences for the spin polarisation of CVV Auger electrons are discussed.Comment: LaTeX, 4 pages, 1 eps figure included, Acta Physica Polonica A (in press), Physics of Magnetism '99 (Poznan, Poland

Optimization of alloy-analogy-based approaches to the infinite-dimensional Hubbard model

An analytical expression for the self-energy of the infinite-dimensional Hubbard model is proposed that interpolates between different exactly solvable limits. We profit by the combination of two recent approaches that are based on the alloy-analogy (Hubbard-III) solution: The modified alloy-analogy (MAA) which focuses on the strong-coupling regime, and the Edwards-Hertz approach (EHA) which correctly recovers the weak-coupling regime. Investigating the high-energy expansion of the EHA self-energy, it turns out that the EHA reproduces the first three exactly known moments of the spectral density only. This may be insufficient for the investigation of spontaneous magnetism. The analysis of the high-energy behavior of the CPA self-consistency equation allows for a new interpretation of the MAA: The MAA is the only (two-component) alloy-analogy that correctly takes into account the first four moments of the spectral density. For small U, however, the MAA does not reproduce Fermi-liquid properties. The defects of the MAA as well as of the EHA are avoided in the new approach. We discuss the prospects of the theory and present numerical results in comparison with essentially exact quantum Monte Carlo data. The correct high-energy behavior of the self-energy is proved to be a decisive ingredient for a reliable description of spontaneous magnetism.Comment: LaTeX, 18 pages, 12 eps figures include

Influence of uncorrelated overlayers on the magnetism in thin itinerant-electron films

The influence of uncorrelated (nonmagnetic) overlayers on the magnetic properties of thin itinerant-electron films is investigated within the single-band Hubbard model. The Coulomb correlation between the electrons in the ferromagnetic layers is treated by using the spectral density approach (SDA). It is found that the presence of nonmagnetic layers has a strong effect on the magnetic properties of thin films. The Curie temperatures of very thin films are modified by the uncorrelated overlayers. The quasiparticle density of states is used to analyze the results. In addition, the coupling between the ferromagnetic layers and the nonmagnetic layers is discussed in detail. The coupling depends on the band occupation of the nonmagnetic layers, while it is almost independent of the number of the nonmagnetic layers. The induced polarization in the nonmagnetic layers shows a long-range decreasing oscillatory behavior and it depends on the coupling between ferromagnetic and nonmagnetic layers.Comment: 9 pages, RevTex, 6 figures, for related work see: http://orion.physik.hu-berlin.d

The asymmetric single-impurity Anderson model - the modified perturbation theory

We investigate the single-impurity Anderson model by means of the recently introduced modified perturbation theory. This approximation scheme yields reasonable results away from the symmetric case. The agreement with exactly known results for the symmetric case is checked, and results for the non-symmetric case are presented. With decreasing conduction band occupation, the breakdown of the screening of the local moment is observed. In the crossover regime between Kondo limit and mixed-valence regime, an enhanced zero-temperature susceptibility is found.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figures, to appear in Physica

On the magnetic stability at the surface in strongly correlated electron systems

The stability of ferromagnetism at the surface at finite temperatures is investigated within the strongly correlated Hubbard model on a semi-infinite lattice. Due to the reduced surface coordination number the effective Coulomb correlation is enhanced at the surface compared to the bulk. Therefore, within the well-known Stoner-picture of band ferromagnetism one would expect the magnetic stability at the surface to be enhanced as well. However, by taking electron correlations into account well beyond the Hartree-Fock (Stoner) level we find the opposite behavior: As a function of temperature the magnetization of the surface layer decreases faster than in the bulk. By varying the hopping integral within the surface layer this behavior becomes even more pronounced. A reduced hopping integral at the surface tends to destabilize surface ferromagnetism whereas the magnetic stability gets enhanced by an increased hopping integral. This behavior represents a pure correlation effect and can be understood in terms of general arguments which are based on exact results in the limit of strong Coulomb interaction.Comment: 6 pages, RevTeX, 4 eps figures, accepted (Phys. Rev. B), for related work and info see http://orion.physik.hu-berlin.d

Two-site dynamical mean-field theory

It is shown that a minimum realization of the dynamical mean-field theory (DMFT) can be achieved by mapping a correlated lattice model onto an impurity model in which the impurity is coupled to an uncorrelated bath that consists of a single site only. The two-site impurity model can be solved exactly. The mapping is approximate. The self-consistency conditions are constructed in a way that the resulting ``two-site DMFT'' reduces to the previously discussed linearized DMFT for the Mott transition. It is demonstrated that a reasonable description of the mean-field physics is possible with a minimum computational effort. This qualifies the simple two-site DMFT for a systematic study of more complex lattice models which cannot be treated by the full DMFT in a feasible way. To show the strengths and limitations of the new approach, the single-band Hubbard model is investigated in detail. The predictions of the two-site DMFT are compared with results of the full DMFT. Internal consistency checks are performed which concern the Luttinger sum rule, other Fermi-liquid relations and thermodynamic consistency.Comment: LaTeX, 14 pages, 8 eps figures included, Phys. Rev. B (in press

Temperature-dependent electronic structure and ferromagnetism in the d=oo Hubbard model studied by a modfied perturbation theory

The infinite-dimensional Hubbard model is studied by means of a modified perturbation theory. The approach reduces to the iterative perturbation theory for weak coupling. It is exact in the atomic limit and correctly reproduces the dispersions and the weights of the Hubbard bands in the strong-coupling regime for arbitrary fillings. Results are presented for the hyper-cubic and an fcc-type lattice. For the latter we find ferromagnetic solutions. The filling-dependent Curie temperature is compared with the results of a recent Quantum Monte Carlo study.Comment: RevTeX, 5 pages, 6 eps figures included, Phys. Rev. B (in press), Ref. 16 correcte

Surface metal-insulator transition in the Hubbard model

The correlation-driven metal-insulator (Mott) transition at a solid surface is studied within the Hubbard model for a semi-infinite lattice by means of the dynamical mean-field theory. The transition takes place at a unique critical strength of the interaction. Depending on the surface geometry, the interaction strength and the wave vector, we find one-electron excitations in the coherent part of the surface-projected metallic spectrum which are confined to two dimensions.Comment: LaTeX, 9 pages, 5 eps figures included, Phys. Rev. B (in press