Linear Magnetoresistance in a Strange Metal

Area of Science:

• Condensed Matter Physics
• Quantum Materials
• Electronic Phases

Background:

• Strongly correlated electronic phases exhibit anomalous transport properties, such as strange metallic behavior.
• Conventional metals display quadratic scaling in resistivity and magnetoresistance, contrasting with strange metals' linear scaling.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explain the origins of strange metallic transport anomalies (T-linear resistivity and B-linear magnetoresistance).
• To develop a minimal microscopic model that captures these transport phenomena near quantum critical points.

Main Methods:

• Coupling electronic excitations at the Fermi surface to quantum critical bosons.
• Incorporating spatially disordered Yukawa interactions and static density wave order.
• Solving the minimal microscopic model to derive transport properties.

Main Results:

• The transport relaxation rate exhibits T-linear scaling at low magnetic fields and B-linear scaling at low temperatures.
• The model reproduces the observed T-linear resistivity and B-linear magnetoresistance characteristic of strange metals.
• Magnetoresistance shows a scaling collapse when magnetic field and resistance are rescaled by temperature, aligning with experimental data.

Conclusions:

• Proximity to quantum critical points is a viable explanation for strange metallic transport anomalies.
• The developed microscopic model successfully captures the essential physics of these anomalous transport behaviors.
• The findings provide a theoretical framework for understanding diverse strange metal candidates.