Dynamical Mean-Field Theory of Electronic Correlations in Models and Materials

The concept of electronic correlations plays an important role in modern condensed matter physics. It refers to interaction effects which cannot be explained within a static mean-field picture as provided by Hartree-Fock theory. Electronic correlations can have a very strong influence on the properties of materials. For example, they may turn a metal into an insulator (Mott-Hubbard metal-insulator transition). In these lecture notes I (i) introduce basic notions of the physics of correlated electronic systems, (ii) discuss the construction of mean-field theories by taking the limit of high lattice dimensions, (iii) explain the simplifications of the many-body perturbation theory in this limit which provide the basis for the formulation of a comprehensive mean-field theory for correlated fermions, the dynamical mean-field theory (DMFT), (v) derive the DMFT self-consistency equations, and (vi) apply the DMFT to investigate electronic correlations in models and materials.Comment: Lecture Notes (65 pages, 26 figures), published version including corrections, published in "Lectures on the Physics of Strongly Correlated Systems XIV", eds. A. Avella and F. Mancini, AIP Conference Proceedings (2010

Conservation laws in disordered electron systems: Thermodynamic limit and configurational averaging

We discuss conservation of probability in noniteracting disordered electron systems. We argue that although the norm of the electron wave function is conserved in individual realizations of the random potential, we cannot extend this conservation law easily to configurationally averaged systems in the thermodynamic limit. A direct generalization of the norm conservation to averaged functions is hindered by the existence of localized states breaking translational invariance. Such states are elusive to the description with periodic Bloch waves. Mathematically this difficulty is manifested through the diffusion pole in the electron-hole irreducible vertex. The pole leads to a clash with analyticity of the self-energy, reflecting causality of the theory, when norm conservation is enforced by the Ward identity between one- and two-particle averaged Green functions.Comment: REVTeX4, 8 pages, no figure

Canted Antiferromagnetic Order of Imbalanced Fermi-Fermi mixtures in Optical Lattices by Dynamical Mean-Field Theory

We investigate antiferromagnetic order of repulsively interacting fermionic atoms in an optical lattice by means of Dynamical Mean-Field Theory (DMFT). Special attention is paid to the case of an imbalanced mixture. We take into account the presence of an underlying harmonic trap, both in a local density approximation and by performing full Real-Space DMFT calculations. We consider the case that the particle density in the trap center is at half filling, leading to an antiferromagnetic region in the center, surrounded by a Fermi liquid region at the edge. In the case of an imbalanced mixture, the antiferromagnetism is directed perpendicular to the ferromagnetic polarization and canted. We pay special attention to the boundary structure between the antiferromagnetic and the Fermi liquid phase. For the moderately strong interactions considered here, no Stoner instability toward a ferromagnetic phase is found. Phase separation is only observed for strong imbalance and sufficiently large repulsion.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures, published versio

Self-Consistent Theory of Anderson Localization: General Formalism and Applications

The self-consistent theory of Anderson localization of quantum particles or classical waves in disordered media is reviewed. After presenting the basic concepts of the theory of Anderson localization in the case of electrons in disordered solids, the regimes of weak and strong localization are discussed. Then the scaling theory of the Anderson localization transition is reviewed. The renormalization group theory is introduced and results and consequences are presented. It is shown how scale-dependent terms in the renormalized perturbation theory of the inverse diffusion coefficient lead in a natural way to a self-consistent equation for the diffusion coefficient. The latter accounts quantitatively for the static and dynamic transport properties except for a region near the critical point. Several recent applications and extensions of the self-consistent theory, in particular for classical waves, are discussed.Comment: 25 pages, 2 figures; published version including correction

Microscopic conditions favoring itinerant ferromagnetism: Hund's rule coupling and orbital degeneracy

The importance of Hund's rule coupling for the stabilization of itinerant ferromagnetism is investigated within a two-band Hubbard model. The magnetic phase diagram is calculated by finite-temperature quantum Monte Carlo simulations within the dynamical mean-field theory. Ferromagnetism is found in a broad range of electron fillings whereas antiferromagnetism exists only near half filling. The possibility of orbital ordering at quarter filling is also analyzed.Comment: 5 pages, 6 figures, RevTeX, final version contains an additional phase diagram for smaller Hund's rule coupling. to appear in Eur. Phys. J. B (1998

Superfluid Helium 3: Link between Condensed Matter Physics and Particle Physics

The discovery of the superfluid phases of Helium 3 in 1971 opened the door to one of the most fascinating systems known in condensed matter physics. Superfluidity of Helium 3, originating from pair condensation of Helium 3 atoms, turned out to be the ideal testground for many fundamental concepts of modern physics, such as macroscopic quantum phenomena, (gauge-)symmetries and their spontaneous breakdown, topological defects, etc. Thereby the superfluid phases of Helium 3 enriched condensed matter physics enormously. In particular, they contributed significantly - and continue to do so - to our understanding of various other physical systems, from heavy fermion and high-Tc superconductors all the way to neutron stars, particle physics, gravity and the early universe. A simple introduction into the basic concepts and questions is presented.Comment: 11 pages, 2 figures; to be published in Acta Physica Polonica B [Proceedings of the XL Jubilee Cracow School of Theoretical Physics on "Quantum Phase Transitions in High Energy and Condensed Matter Physics"; 3-11 June, 2000, Zakopane, Poland

Mixtures of correlated bosons and fermions: Dynamical mean-field theory for normal and condensed phases

We derive a dynamical mean-field theory for mixtures of interacting bosons and fermions on a lattice (BF-DMFT). The BF-DMFT is a comprehensive, thermodynamically consistent framework for the theoretical investigation of Bose-Fermi mixtures and is applicable for arbitrary values of the coupling parameters and temperatures. It becomes exact in the limit of high spatial dimensions d or coordination number Z of the lattice. In particular, the BF-DMFT treats normal and condensed bosons on equal footing and thus includes the effects caused by their dynamic coupling. Using the BF-DMFT we investigate two different interaction models of correlated lattice bosons and fermions, one where all particles are spinless (model I) and one where fermions carry a spin one-half (model II). In model I the local, repulsive interaction between bosons and fermions can give rise to an attractive effective interaction between the bosons. In model II it can also lead to an attraction between the fermions.Comment: 11 pages, removed style-files for Greek letter

Ferromagnetism and non-local correlations in the Hubbard model

We study the possibility and stability of band-ferromagnetism in the single-band Hubbard model for the simple cubic (SC) lattice. A non-local self-energy is derived within a modified perturbation theory. Results for the spectral density and quasiparticle density of states are shown with special attention to the effects of k-dependence. The importance of non-local correlations for the fulfillment of the Mermin-Wagner theorem is our main result. A phase digram showing regions of ferromagnetic order is calculated for the three dimensional lattice. Besides, we show results for the optical conductivity and prove that already the renormalized one-loop contribution to the conductivity cancels the Drude peak exactly in case of a local self-energy which is not anymore true for a non-local self-energy.Comment: 11 pages, 10 figures, accepted for publication in PR

Anderson localization as position-dependent diffusion in disordered waveguides

We show that the recently developed self-consistent theory of Anderson localization with a position-dependent diffusion coefficient is in quantitative agreement with the supersymmetry approach up to terms of the order of $1/g_0^2$ (with $g_0$ the dimensionless conductance in the absence of interference effects) and with large-scale {\it ab-initio} simulations of the classical wave transport in disordered waveguides, at least for $g_0 \gtrsim 0.5$. In the latter case, agreement is found even in the presence of absorption. Our numerical results confirm that in open disordered media, the onset of Anderson localization can be viewed as position-dependent diffusion.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figure