Phase diagram of interacting spinless fermions on the honeycomb lattice

Fermions hopping on a hexagonal lattice represent one of the most active research fields in condensed matter since the discovery of graphene in 2004 and its numerous applications. Another exciting aspect of the interplay between geometry and quantum mechanical effects is given by the Haldane model (Haldane 1988 Phys. Rev. Lett. 61 2015), where spinless fermions experiencing a certain flux pattern on the honeycomb lattice leads to the stabilization of a topological phase of matter, distinct from a Mott insulator and nowadays dubbed Chern insulator. In this context, it is crucial to understand the role of interactions and this review will describe recent results that have been obtained for a minimal model, namely spinless fermions with nearest and next-nearest neighbour density-density interactions on the honeycomb lattice at half-filling. Topics addressed include an introduction of the minimal model and a discussion of the possible instabilities of the Dirac semimetal, a presentation of various theoretical and numerical approaches, and a summary of the results with a particular emphasis on the stability or not of some exotic quantum phases such as charge ordered ones (similar to Wigner crystals) and spontaneous Chern insulator phases.