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  • Letter
  • Open Access

Instability of the Haldane phase: Roles of charge fluctuations and Hund's coupling

Satoshi Nishimoto*

  • *Contact author: s.nishimoto@ifw-dresden.de
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Phys. Rev. B 112, L161102 – Published 1 October, 2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/8h2q-4wnt

Abstract

We systematically investigate the stability of the symmetry-protected topological (SPT) Haldane phase in spin-12 Heisenberg and half-filled Hubbard ladders coupled by ferromagnetic Hund's interactions. Using the density-matrix renormalization group method, we analyze key signatures of the Haldane phase: long-range string order, finite spin gap, and characteristic entanglement spectrum degeneracies. In spin-only Heisenberg ladders, we find immediate onset and continuous strengthening of the Haldane phase with increasing Hund's coupling. In contrast, the inclusion of charge fluctuations in Hubbard ladders leads to a nontrivial stability regime, revealing a robust yet bounded region where SPT order persists despite significant charge fluctuations. We identify distinct boundaries separating a trivial insulating phase from the Haldane SPT phase, governed by both Coulomb repulsion and Hund's coupling. Our results highlight the subtle interplay of spin and charge degrees of freedom in correlated itinerant systems and establish essential criteria for observing Haldane physics experimentally in fermionic ladder materials.

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References (41)

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Information

Phys. Rev. B 112, L161102– Published 1 October, 2025
  • Received 8 July 2025
  • Revised 17 September 2025
  • Accepted 19 September 2025
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Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI.

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