Hidden octupole order in URu₂Si₂

Efficient Method for Prediction of Metastable or Ground Multipolar Ordered States and Its Application in Monolayer α-RuX_{3} (X=Cl, I)

Exotic high-rank multipolar order parameters have been found to be unexpectedly active in more and more correlated materials in recent years. Such multipoles are usually dubbed "hidden orders" since they are insensitive to common experimental probes. Theoretically, it is also difficult to predict multipolar orders via ab initio calculations in real materials. Here, we present an efficient method to predict possible multipoles in materials based on linear response theory under random phase approximation. Using this method, we successfully predict two pure metastable magnetic octupolar states in monolayer α-RuCl_{3}, which is confirmed by self-consistent unrestricted Hartree-Fock calculations. We then demonstrate that these octupolar states can be stabilized in monolayer α-RuI_{3}, one of which becomes the octupolar ground state. Furthermore, we also predict a fingerprint of an orthogonal magnetization pattern produced by the octupole moment that can be easily detected by experiment. The method and the example presented in this Letter serve as a guide for searching multipolar order parameters in other correlated materials.

Long range order and two-fluid behavior in heavy electron materials

The heavy electron Kondo liquid is an emergent state of condensed matter that displays universal behavior independent of material details. Properties of the heavy electron liquid are best probed by NMR Knight shift measurements, which provide a direct measure of the behavior of the heavy electron liquid that emerges below the Kondo lattice coherence temperature as the lattice of local moments hybridizes with the background conduction electrons. Because the transfer of spectral weight between the localized and itinerant electronic degrees of freedom is gradual, the Kondo liquid typically coexists with the local moment component until the material orders at low temperatures. The two-fluid formula captures this behavior in a broad range of materials in the paramagnetic state. In order to investigate two-fluid behavior and the onset and physical origin of different long range ordered ground states in heavy electron materials, we have extended Knight shift measurements to URu(2)Si(2), CeIrIn(5), and CeRhIn(5). In CeRhIn(5) we find that the antiferromagnetic order is preceded by a relocalization of the Kondo liquid, providing independent evidence for a local moment origin of antiferromagnetism. In URu(2)Si(2) the hidden order is shown to emerge directly from the Kondo liquid and so is not associated with local moment physics. Our results imply that the nature of the ground state is strongly coupled with the hybridization in the Kondo lattice in agreement with phase diagram proposed by Yang and Pines.

Spin-orbit density wave induced hidden topological order in URu2Si2

The conventional order parameters in quantum matters are often characterized by 'spontaneous' broken symmetries. However, sometimes the broken symmetries may blend with the invariant symmetries to lead to mysterious emergent phases. The heavy fermion metal URu2Si2 is one such example, where the order parameter responsible for a second-order phase transition at Th=17.5 K has remained a long-standing mystery. Here we propose via ab-initio calculation and effective model that a novel spin-orbit density wave in the f-states is responsible for the hidden-order phase in URu2Si2. The staggered spin-orbit order spontaneously breaks rotational, and translational symmetries while time-reversal symmetry remains intact. Thus it is immune to pressure, but can be destroyed by magnetic field even at T=0 K, that means at a quantum critical point. We compute topological index of the order parameter to show that the hidden order is topologically invariant. Finally, some verifiable predictions are presented.