Weyl Semimetal to Metal Phase Transitions Driven by Quasiperiodic Potentials

J. H. Pixley, Justin H. Wilson, David A. Huse, and Sarang Gopalakrishnan
Phys. Rev. Lett. 120, 207604 – Published 18 May 2018
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Abstract

We explore the stability of three-dimensional Weyl and Dirac semimetals subject to quasiperiodic potentials. We present numerical evidence that the semimetal is stable for weak quasiperiodic potentials, despite being unstable for weak random potentials. As the quasiperiodic potential strength increases, the semimetal transitions to a metal, then to an “inverted” semimetal, and then finally to a metal again. The semimetal and metal are distinguished by the density of states at the Weyl point, as well as by level statistics, transport, and the momentum-space structure of eigenstates near the Weyl point. The critical properties of the transitions in quasiperiodic systems differ from those in random systems: we do not find a clear critical scaling regime in energy; instead, at the quasiperiodic transitions, the density of states appears to jump abruptly (and discontinuously to within our resolution).

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  • Received 23 February 2018

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.120.207604

© 2018 American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Condensed Matter, Materials & Applied PhysicsStatistical Physics & Thermodynamics

Authors & Affiliations

J. H. Pixley1,2, Justin H. Wilson3, David A. Huse4, and Sarang Gopalakrishnan5

  • 1Department of Physics and Astronomy, Center for Materials Theory, Rutgers University, Piscataway, New Jersey 08854, USA
  • 2Condensed Matter Theory Center and the Joint Quantum Institute, Department of Physics, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742-4111, USA
  • 3Institute of Quantum Information and Matter and Department of Physics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA
  • 4Physics Department, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA
  • 5Department of Engineering Science and Physics, CUNY College of Staten Island, Staten Island, New York 10314, USA and Initiative for the Theoretical Sciences, CUNY Graduate Center, New York, New York 10016 USA

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Issue

Vol. 120, Iss. 20 — 18 May 2018

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