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Magnetothermoelectric response at a superfluid-Mott-insulator transition
M J Bhaseen1, A G Green, S L Sondhi
1Rudolf Peierls Centre for Theoretical Physics, 1 Keble Road, Oxford, OX1 3NP, United Kingdom.
Physical Review Letters
|May 16, 2007
Summary
We found that quantum critical regimes near superfluid-Mott insulator transitions support thermoelectric effects. This includes a non-vanishing thermoelectric tensor and thermal transport, impacting magnetothermoelectric response.
Area of Science:
- Condensed Matter Physics
- Quantum Magnetism
- Thermoelectric Phenomena
Background:
- Superfluid-Mott insulator transitions are key phenomena in quantum many-body systems.
- Understanding the behavior near quantum critical points is crucial for developing new materials and technologies.
- Thermoelectric effects, which interconvert heat and electrical energy, are of significant technological interest.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the finite temperature magnetothermoelectric response near a quantum phase transition.
- To explore the particle-hole symmetric transitions within the Bose-Hubbard model.
- To determine the existence and nature of thermoelectric transport coefficients in a quantum critical regime.
Main Methods:
- Utilizing Lorentz invariance arguments.
- Performing quantum Boltzmann calculations.
- Employing an epsilon expansion for analysis.
Main Results:
- A non-vanishing thermoelectric tensor was found to exist in the quantum critical regime.
- A finite thermal transport coefficient was identified in the same regime.
- The study comments on the singular Nernst effect observed in this context.
Conclusions:
- Finite temperature thermoelectric effects are supported in quantum critical regimes near superfluid-Mott insulator transitions.
- The Bose-Hubbard model exhibits unique magnetothermoelectric properties at criticality.
- These findings contribute to the understanding of quantum phase transitions and thermoelectric phenomena.
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