2003/11/30 by Eduardo Fradkin, David A. Huse, R. Moessner +2 · 2 citations
Physics and Astronomy · #cond-mat.stat-mech #cond-mat.supr-con
paper · pdf · doi:10.1103/physrevb.69.224415
published as Phys. Rev. B 69, 224415 (2004) · 9 pages; expanded version to appear in Phys. Rev. B; presentation improved
arxiv created 2004/04/29 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01
Quantum dimer models on bipartite lattices exhibit Rokhsar-Kivelson (RK) points with exactly known critical ground states and deconfined spinons. We examine generic, weak, perturbations around these points. In d=2+1 we find a first order transition between a ``plaquette'' valence bond crystal and a region with a devil's staircase of commensurate and incommensurate valence bond crystals. In the part of the phase diagram where the staircase is incomplete, the incommensurate states exhibit a gapless photon and deconfined spinons on a set of finite measure, almost but not quite a deconfined phase in a compact U(1) gauge theory in d=2+1! In d=3+1 we find a continuous transition between the U(1) resonating valence bond (RVB) phase and a deconfined staggered valence bond crystal. In an appendix we comment on analogous phenomena in quantum vertex models, most notably the existence of a continuous transition on the triangular lattice in d=2+1.