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# The spectral and magnetic properties of 𝛼- and 𝛾-Ce from the Dynamical Mean-Field Theory and Local Density Approximation

## Abstract

We have calculated ground state properties and excitation spectra for Ce metal with the ab initio computational scheme combining local density approximation and dynamical mean-field theory (LDA+DMFT). We considered all electronic states, i.e. correlated $`f`$-states and non-correlated $`s`$-, $`p`$\- and $`d`$-states. The strong local correlations (Coulomb interaction) among the $`f`$-states lead to typical many-body resonances in the partial $`f`$-density, such as lower and upper Hubbard band. Additionally the well known Kondo resonance is observed. The $`s`$-, $`p`$\- and $`d`$-densities show small to mediate renormalization effects due to hybridization. We observe different Kondo temperatures for $`\alpha `$\- and $`\gamma `$-Ce ($`T_{K,\alpha }1000K`$ and $`T_{K,\gamma }30K`$), due to strong volume dependence of the effective hybridization strength for the localized $`f`$-electrons. Finally we compare our results with a variety of experimental data, i.e. from photoemission spectroscopy (PES), inverse photoemission spectroscopy (BIS), resonant inverse photoemission spectroscopy (RIPES) and magnetic susceptibility measurements.

71.27.+a Strongly correlated electron systems 74.25.Jb Electronic structure

Ce metal is the simplest lanthanide compound with only one atom in a face centered cubic (fcc) crystal structure and a relatively small set of relevant electronic states derived from $`s`$-, $`p`$\- $`d`$\- and $`f`$-orbitals of Ce. It shows an unique isostructural (fcc to fcc) $`\alpha \gamma `$ phase transition with increasing temperature. The high-temperature $`\gamma `$ phase has 15% larger volume and displays a Curie-Weiss-like temperature dependence of the magnetic susceptibility signaling the existence of local magnetic moments while the $`\alpha `$-phase has a Pauli-like temperature independent paramagnetism .

While many different models were proposed to describe this system (for a review see ), the most relevant seems to be the periodic Anderson model. Studies based on the single impurity Anderson model  with a hybridization function obtained from LDA band structure calculations were rather successful in reproducing Kondo scales and spectra for $`\alpha `$\- and $`\gamma `$-Ce. However, an empirical renormalization of the hybridization function and position of the impurity level were needed for satisfactory agreement between calculated and experimental spectra.

Due to the recent development of the Dynamical Mean-Field Theory  a more realistic treatment of Ce is now possible. In contrast to the Hubbard model (degenerate and non-degenerate), where hybridization occurs only between correlated $`d`$\- or $`f`$-orbitals, Ce is much more complicated. The direct $`f`$-$`f`$ hybridization is of the same order of magnitude as the hybridization of $`f`$-orbitals with the delocalized $`spd`$-states. Thus in order to describe Ce one even has to go beyond the periodic Anderson model, where only hybridization of the correlated $`f`$-orbitals with the delocalized states is included. In order to address this problem we used the most general procedure for calculating the Green function using a full basis set ($`s,p,d,f`$) Hamiltonian with the integration over Brillouin zone in k-space.

Recently a LDA+DMFT approach was proposed, with different methods to solve the DMFT equations: IPT , NCA  and QMC . All these three methods were used to investigate La1-xSrxTiO3 . The same strategy was formulated by Lichtenstein and Katsnelson  as one of their LDA++ approaches. Lichtenstein and Katsnelson applied LDA+DMFT(IPT) , and were the first to use LDA+DMFT(QMC)  to investigate the spectral properties of iron. Liebsch and Lichtenstein also applied LDA+DMFT(QMC) to calculate the photoemission spectrum of Sr2RuO4 .

Here we present results obtained within LDA+DMFT(NCA) . After convergence of the DMFT selfconsistent loop the hybridization function corresponds to fully interacting effective medium for the $`f`$-shell of a Ce ion. The interacting Green function obtained in our calculation allows us to compute ground state properties like orbital occupation values, Kondo temperatures $`T_K`$, magnetic susceptibility $`\chi (0)`$, as well as excitation spectra. Our results show a satisfactory agreement with the experimental data without using any adjustable parameters.

In the following we will concentrate on a simplified local interaction. Here, we introduce two distinct Coulomb parameters: the intra-orbital Coulomb energy $`U`$ has to be considered in case of a doubly occupied orbital, while the inter-orbital Coulomb energy $`U^{}`$ applies for example in the case of a doubly occupied $`f`$-shell with electrons on $`f`$-orbitals with different indices. Since we neglect any exchange correlations, which is typically of the order of one tenth of the Coulomb interaction, we chose $`U=U^{}`$ in order to fulfill the condition of rotational invariance of the local interaction . A more sophisticated interaction term has been already investigated within the framework of LDA+DMFT(NCA) scheme . We thus arrive at an interaction of the form

$$H_{corr}^{local}=U\underset{m}{}\widehat{n}_m\widehat{n}_m+\frac{U^{}}{2}\underset{m,m^{},\sigma ,\sigma ^{}}{\overset{mm^{}}{}}\widehat{n}_{m\sigma }\widehat{n}_{m^{}\sigma ^{}}.$$
(1)
The most important feature of the DMFT is that the proper one-particle selfenergy due to the local Coulomb interaction is purely local . Thus, we obtain as an expression for the full Green function of the interacting system

$$G(z)=\frac{1}{N_\stackrel{}{k}}\underset{\stackrel{}{k}}{}(z\stackrel{}{\mathrm{I}}\stackrel{}{\mathrm{h}}(\stackrel{}{\mathrm{k}})\mathrm{\Sigma }(\mathrm{z})\stackrel{}{\mathrm{I}}_\mathrm{f})^1,$$
(2)
noninteracting one-particle hamiltonian $`\stackrel{}{\mathrm{h}}(\stackrel{}{\mathrm{k}})`$ and consequently $`G(z)`$ will in general be matrices in orbital space, $`\stackrel{}{\mathrm{I}}_\mathrm{f}`$ is the diagonal matrix with matrix elements equal 1 for f-orbitals and zero for all others, $`\stackrel{}{\mathrm{I}}`$ is unit matrix. The $`\stackrel{}{k}`$-summation is done by a standard tetrahedron method . Within this method one can easily treat hybridization effects between correlated and non-correlated states.

As starting point of our calculation we determined the one particle LDA Hamiltonian with the LMTO method  considering the $`6s`$,$`6p`$,$`5d`$ and $`4f`$-shells. The noninteracting one-particle hamiltonian $`\stackrel{}{\mathrm{h}}(\stackrel{}{\mathrm{k}})`$ was obtained by subtracting the Hartree contribution of (1) from the LDA results in order to avoid double counting . The value of the Coulomb interaction was calculated by a supercell method  and found to be $`U6eV`$. The chemical potential was adjusted to conserve the number of paricles (4 electrons per site) during the selfconsistent LDA+DMFT calculation. Analizing the partial densities of states one can observe for both $`\alpha `$\- and $`\gamma `$-Ce at a temperature of $`T=580K`$ intermediate size renormalization effects, in particular broadening and shifts of structures, for $`s`$\- and $`d`$-states and only marginal effects for the $`p`$-states. This is a consequence of hybridization, which is seen by a non-vanishing $`s`$\- or $`d`$-density at the position of the $`f`$-states in the LDA result. The $`f`$-states are strongly renormalized. A lower Hubbard band (LHB) is observed at the position of the corrected (double counting) LDA $`f`$-state (at about $`3eV`$). The upper Hubbard band (UHB) is situated at about $`4.5eV`$ and describes an excitation of a doubly occupied $`f`$-state. At the Fermi level one observes a Kondo resonance (KR) for $`\alpha `$-Ce, which can be described by a singlet formation between an unpaired $`f`$-electron and the surounding conduction electrons. The $`d`$-density for $`\alpha `$-Ce shows an onset of a hybridization gap, which is well known in model calculations for the periodic Anderson model  and is a consequence of the formation of the singlet state between the unpaired $`f`$-spins and the conduction electrons. For $`\gamma `$-Ce one observes only the onset of a KR as a consequence of the smaller $`T_K`$ compared to the $`\alpha `$-phase and thus no hybridization gap opens in the conduction electron density.

In Table I we show a comparison of our results with the results of spectral fits to electron  and high-energy neutron spectroscopy . The occupation probabilities are in very good agreement with the experiment, as well as the number of occupied $`f`$-states per site, $`n_f`$. The occupation probabilities $`P_0`$, $`P_1`$ and $`P_2`$ for the states $`f^0`$, $`f^1`$ and $`f^2`$ were calculated from the particular ionic propagators. The Kondo temperature for $`\alpha `$-Ce $`T_{K,\alpha }1000K`$ is roughly given by the width of the KR. Since for $`\gamma `$-Ce the Abrikosov-Suhl resonance is not yet well developed, it makes no sense to estimate $`T_K`$ from the width. Instead, for $`\gamma `$-Ce we estimate the $`T_K`$ from the ratio of the hybridization strength at the Fermi level of both considered materials ($`\mathrm{}\{\mathrm{\Delta }_\alpha (\epsilon _F)\}/\mathrm{}\{\mathrm{\Delta }_\gamma (\epsilon _F)\}=2`$). With this relation we obtain $`T_{K,\gamma }\frac{1}{30}T_{K,\alpha }`$ . Since the NCA for multi-band models typically underestimates $`T_K`$, it is obvious, that our absolute values cannot be expected to match with the experiments. Nevertheless, the ratio of the Kondo temperatures for the two different phases should be meaningful and are in good agreement to the experiment (see Table I). The static susceptibilities $`\chi (0)`$ calculated with the $`T_K`$ as an input via $`\chi (0)=C\frac{1n(f^0)}{T_K}`$, naturally have the same qualitative character. In this formula $`C`$ is the Curie constant for the lowest $`4f`$-state with $`j=\frac{5}{2}`$ and $`n(f^0)`$ is the occupation of the $`f^0`$ states. Again, the ratio of the susceptibilities for the both phases are in good agreement with experiment (see Table I). Also in Table I the parameter $`\mathrm{\Delta }_{av}`$ represents the averaged value of the imaginary part of the hybridization function $`\mathrm{}\{\mathrm{\Delta }(\omega )\}`$ for an energy interval from $`3eV`$ to $`0eV`$ . It is also in reasonable agreement with experiment.

For $`\alpha `$-Ce the evolution of the KR is clearly observed down to a temperature of $`T=580K`$, whereas in $`\gamma `$-Ce the evolution of a quasi-particle resonance is strongly suppressed in this temperature regime by a smaller hybridization. Nevertheless by decreasing the temperature down to $`T=116K`$ the onset of the many-body resonance can be observed for $`\gamma `$-Ce, too.

A comparison of the imaginary part of the hybridization function for both phases leads to the result that a strong renormalization takes place in comparison to our pure LDA results, which are in agreement with Ref. . The total weight of this quantity for $`\alpha `$-Ce is twice as high as the one for the $`\gamma `$-phase. Here it turns out that the consideration of all hybridization processes is extremly important in order to get a qualitatively good agreement to experimental results. If one uses a model with correlated $`f`$-states only, one has to consider one electron per per site. This would produce a $`f`$-density with the Fermi energy in between the $`f^1`$ and $`f^2`$ charge excitation peak, the LHB and UHB respectivly. Since the hybridization function is proportional to the density of states one would observe only a small hybridization at the Fermi energy. Thus the additional $`s`$-, $`p`$\- and $`d`$-conduction states strongly contribute to the hybridization function at the Fermi energy and lead therefore to different $`T_K`$.

In the PES data for $`\alpha `$-Ce in upper part of Fig. 1 the observed peaks are identified as $`f`$-contributions to the density of states by a cross section argument using different photon energies . Thus we compare the experiment with the calculated partial density for $`f`$-states. The theoretical $`f`$-spectrum shows a LHB which is also seen in the experiment.

The BIS spectrum for $`\alpha `$-Ce shows a main structure between $`3eV`$ and $`7eV`$, which is attributed to $`4f^2`$ final state multiplets. In the calculated spectrum all excitations to $`4f^2`$ states are described by the featureless UHB. As a consequence of the simplified interaction model all doubly occupied states are degenerate. This shortcoming in our calculation is responsible for the sharp peaked structure of this feature. The neglected exchange interaction would produce a multiplet structure, which would be closer to the experiment. The experimental peak at about $`0.5eV`$ is attributed to two $`4f^1`$ final states, which are split by spin-orbit coupling. The calculated $`f`$-spectrum shows a sharp KR slightly above the Fermi energy, which is the result of the formation of a singlet state between $`f`$\- and conduction states. We thus suggest that the spectral weight seen in the experiment is a result of this KR. Since we did not yet include spin-orbit coupling in our model, we of course cannot observe the mentioned splitting of the resonance. However, as it is well known , the introduction of such a splitting would eventually split the KR. If we used the experimentally determined value of about $`0.3eV`$ for the spin-orbit splitting , the observed resonance of width $`0.5eV`$ would indeed occur in the calculations.

In the lower part of Fig. 1 a comparison between experiment and our calculation for $`\gamma `$-Ce is shown. The most striking difference between lower and upper figures is the absence of the KR in the high temperature phase ($`\gamma `$-Ce; transition temperature $`141K`$ ) which is in agreement with our calculations.

In Fig. 2 our results for the non-occupied states in the $`f`$-density are compared with RIPES data . The calculated $`f`$-spectra were multiplied by the Fermi-step function and broadened with an Lorentzian of the width $`0.1eV`$ in order to mimic the experimental resolution in the theoretical curves. Here, as above the theoretical overestimation of the UHB is a consequence of the simplified local interaction and thus of the missing multiplet structure of the $`4f^2`$-final states. The main feature of the experimental spectra: strong decreasing of the intensity ratio for KR and UHB peaks going from $`\alpha `$\- to $`\gamma `$-phase, can be also seen for theoretical curves.

In conclusion we have described a realization of a combination of density-functional theory in the local density approximation and the dynamical mean field theory to obtain a first-principles computational scheme for Heavy-Fermion systems. The scheme was set up for the first time with a combination of correlated and non-correlated states in order to introduce the important effect of hybridization between $`s`$-, $`p`$-, $`d`$-states and strongly correlated $`f`$-states. The solution of the DMFT equations was done by using the Non-Crossing approximation. We calculated the one-particle spectra for $`\alpha `$\- and $`\gamma `$-Ce and found Kondo temperature values ($`T_{K,\alpha }1000K`$ and $`T_{K,\gamma }30K`$), which explain the experimental results.

We observe quite resonable results concerning occupation probabilities $`P_0`$, $`P_1`$, $`P_2`$ and the number of $`f`$-electrons per site $`n_f`$. The ratio of $`T_K`$ and thus the static susceptibilities $`\chi (0)`$ values for two phases are in fair agreement with the experimental results considering the problems of the NCA method. Moreover we found qualitative good agreement with PES, BIS and RIPES experiments, i.e. the position of LHB, UHB and the Kondo resonance.

This work was partially supported by the DFG grant PR 298/5-1&2 and Russian Foundation for Basic Research Grant No. RFFI-98-02-17275.


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# Untitled Document

HUTP-01/A003 hep-th/0101218

Brane/anti-Brane Systems and $`U(N|M)`$ Supergroup

Cumrun $`\mathrm{Vafa}`$

Jefferson Physical Laboratory

Harvard University

Cambridge, MA 02138, USA

Abstract

We show that in the context of topological string theories N branes and M anti-branes give rise to Chern-Simons gauge theory with the gauge supergroup $`U(N|M)`$. We also identify a deformation of the theory which corresponds to brane/anti-brane annihilation. Furthermore we show that when $`N=M`$ all open string states are BRST trivial in the deformed theory.

January 2001

1. Introduction

Topological strings propagating on Calabi-Yau threefolds provide a consistent vacuum of bosonic string theory  similar, and in some cases equivalent, to non-critical vacua of the bosonic strings. For example the B-model topological string on the conifold is equivalent to non-critical bosonic string propagating on a self-dual circle .

One can also consider open string version of these theories  which can be interpreted, in modern terminology, as adding D-branes to the Calabi-Yau. For example, if one considers $`N`$ D-branes wrapping a Lagrangian 3-manifold $`L`$ inside a Calabi-Yau, then the topological A-model gives rise to an open string field theory in the target space which is equivalent to ordinary Chern-Simons theory on $`L`$. In particular if we consider $`N`$ D-branes on $`L`$ we obtain $`U(N)`$ Chern-Simons theory on $`L`$ (similarly in the B-model version one can consider D-branes wrapping holomorphic cycles and one ends up with a holomorphic version of Chern-Simons theory as the open string field theory).

The aim of the present note is to generalize these constructions to also include “anti-D-branes”. We find that, with a suitable notion of what “anti-D-branes” are in the topological theory, the theory involving $`N`$ D-branes and $`M`$ anti-D-branes wrapping the three manifold $`L`$ in the context of A-type topological strings, leads to a Chern-Simons open string field theory with the gauge groups being the supergroup $`U(N|M)`$ (and similarly for the B-type case which leads to holomorphic Chern-Simons theory with supergroup connection). We also discuss the brane/anti-brane annihilation by giving a vev to a scalar field in the theory (which is the topological analog of “tachyon condensation”) and show how the physical states of the open string theory are removed upon this deformation.

Certain aspects of brane/anti-brane systems in the context of topological string theory and in particular its relation (in the context of B-model topological strings) with derived category has been pointed out in  .

2. Review of Chern-Simons Theory as a String Theory

Consider A-model topological strings propagating on Calabi-Yau threefold, together with a Lagrangian submanifold $`L`$. Putting $`N`$ D-branes on $`L`$ we end up with the open topological string sector involving $`U(N)`$ Chern-Simons gauge theory ,

$$S=\frac{ik}{4\pi ^2}_LTr[\frac{1}{2}AdA+\frac{1}{3}A^3]$$

where the level $`ik`$ (or $`i(k+N)`$ after quantum corrections) of the Chern-Simons theory is identified with the inverse of the string coupling constant. In other words the open string worldsheets in this context are exactly the ‘t Hooft diagrams of the $`U(N)`$ Chern-Simons theory.

The only physical string mode in the open string sector is the 1-form connection $`A`$ and none of the oscillator modes of the open string theory are physical. In particular the general open string Chern-Simons field theory coincides with the ordinary Chern-Simons theory in this case. Moreover the BRST operator of the string $`Q`$ is identified with the $`d`$ operator

$$Qd$$

The space of vacua is parameterized by flat connections $`F=0`$. For each such vacuum, corresponding to connection $`A_0`$ the BRST cohomology gets deformed to the covariant connection

$$Qd_{A_0}=d+[A_0,.]$$

which can be readily seen by expanding the action near the new vacuum up to quadratic terms in the fluctuation field $`\delta A`$. For each such vacuum the physical states of the theory are in one to one correspondence with $`Q`$ cohomology, which is the same as the tangent space to the moduli space of flat connections at $`A=A_0`$. Note that if there is no continuous family of flat connections, as would be the case if $`\pi _1(L)`$ is empty, there would be no physical state in the open string sector. This does not necessarily imply that open string sector gives zero partition function. For example if we take $`L=S^3`$ then there are no (local) physical states as the fundamental group of $`S^3`$ is trivial, but nevertheless the partition function of $`U(N)`$ Chern-Simons is highly non-trivial (in other words the worldsheet diagrams with boundaries do not give zero). There are in addition non-local observables for Chern-Simons theory, such as Wilson lines along links.1 It might be interesting to study the analog of Wilson loop observables for ordinary open string field theory which is also abstractly a Chern-Simons theory (in Witten’s formulation).

The open string field theory comes in general equipped with the ghosts which provide the BRST fields for the open string field theory. This is also the case in this particular example. The ghosts of the Chern-Simons gauge theory in this case correspond to enlarging $`A`$ to be a combination of all forms , with even forms being fermionic and odd forms being bosonic. The ghost number of the string field theory coincides with the degree of the form. The usual physical field corresponds to ghost number 1, which is the one-form connection. However in topological string theory it is natural to consider all ghost number fields (including their zero modes) on equal footing and consider the extended theory. In particular the bosonic fields of this extended theory can in general have a bigger moduli space than the original theory as is well known in the context of closed topological strings (where it is called the extended moduli space). We will consider this extended theory also in the context of open strings and this will play an important role when we discuss brane/anti-brane annihilation below.

One can also consider the B-model topological strings and in this case (if we consider N wrapped D6 branes) we obtain a holomorphic version of Chern-Simons theory, whose basic field is a $`(0,1)`$-form connection $`\overline{A}`$ of a holomorphic bundle, with the action

$$S=\frac{ik}{4\pi ^2}\mathrm{\Omega }Tr[\frac{1}{2}\overline{A}\overline{}\overline{A}+\frac{1}{3}\overline{A}^3]$$

where $`\mathrm{\Omega }`$ is the holomorphic 3-form on the Calabi-Yau. Here $`Q=\overline{}+[\overline{A},.]`$. Similarly on lower even dimensional branes one obtains the natural reduction of the above action to the corresponding dimension. This extended theory (i.e. including all degree forms as part of $`\overline{A}`$) has also been considered recently in .

3. Topological Anti-D-branes

We should decide what in the topological theory should distinguish branes from anti-branes. A natural choice, which we will adopt, is the following: The anti-branes should carry the opposite number of branes compared to branes. In the topological theory the only signature of dealing with a number of branes is the Chan-Paton factor $`N`$ that one associates to each worldsheet boundary ending on them. Thus if we have $`M`$ anti-branes, it is natural to associate a factor of $`M`$ for each such hole. Put differently, for each anti-brane we put an extra minus sign for each worldsheet hole ending on it. This is our definition of topological anti-D-branes. Note that if we have only anti-branes wrapping some Lagrangian 3-cycle, the net effect of this on the partition function is the same as weighing worldsheet diagrams with odd number of holes with an extra minus sign. This in turn can be viewed as replacing the string coupling by minus itself, or replacing $`ikik`$ (or in the quantum corrected version $`i(k+N)i(k+N)`$), which is the same as complex conjugation of the partition function. This is consistent with what one might naturally expect for anti-branes.

In the next section, we use the above definition of anti-branes and consider a situation where we have both branes and anti-branes and write down the effective open string field theory.

4. Brane/anti-Brane Systems and Chern-Simons Gauge Theory with Supergroup $`U(N|M)`$

Consider $`N`$ branes and $`M`$ anti-branes wrapped around a Lagrangian 3-cycle $`L`$. We would like to know what is the open string field theory for this theory. The physical state of the open string sector can be deduced, as usual, by considering the annulus diagram. In this case there are four such diagrams; One coming from boundaries ending on branes carrying a factor of $`N^2`$–the corresponding physical state (at ghost number one) is naturally interpretable as the one-form connection in a $`U(N)`$ gauge group. The other diagram comes from both boundaries ending on an anti-Brane. This gives a factor of $`(M)(M)=+M^2`$, whose physical field can be interpreted as a one form connection for the gauge group $`U(M)`$. We also have two more diagrams ending on opposite type of branes, each giving a factor $`N(M)=NM`$. The corresponding physical states can be interpreted as 1-form gauge fields which are in the representation

$$(N,\overline{M})(\overline{N},M)$$

However, the extra minus sign in this annulus diagram implies that they are to be viewed as fermionic fields. In fact these fields naturally assemble themselves into the connection 1-form $`𝒜`$ for a supergroup $`U(N|M)`$. It is also similarly straightforward to derive the open string field theory. It is the Chern-Simons gauge theory for the supergroup $`U(N|M)`$:

$$S=\frac{ik}{4\pi ^2}_LTr[\frac{1}{2}𝒜d𝒜+\frac{1}{3}𝒜^3]$$

where the notion of trace in the above action is in terms of the natural trace for the supergroup $`U(N|M)`$. The appearance of ‘superconnection’ is also natural from the viewpoint of brane/anti-brane systems in ordinary superstring theory . However, in the superstring context the off-diagonal elements that appear in the superconnection are not connections (i.e. are not 1-forms), but are replaced by tachyons. Thus the superconnection in the usual superstring context, unlike here, cannot be viewed as a connection for a supergroup2 It would be interesting to see if there is any sense in which a gauge supergroup also exists in the superstring context.. In the next section we will discuss, in the topological context, how the analog of tachyon field arises.

Let us note that the partition function of the $`U(N|M)`$ Chern-Simons theory (expanded near the trivial connection) is the same as that of $`U(NM)`$. This follows from the simple observation  that in the ‘t Hooft expansion of $`U(N|M)`$ gauge theory, the $`N,M`$ dependence for each ‘t Hooft organization of Feynman diagram arises from boundary Chan-Paton factors, and for each boundary we obtain a supertrace over the fundamental representation of $`U(N|M)`$ which gives $`(NM)`$. This is of course manifest from our definition of what anti-branes are. Thus the amplitudes for the Chern-Simons theory with supergroup $`U(N|M)`$ and that with gauge group $`U(NM)`$ coincide, as one might expect for a theory with $`NM`$ net number for branes. This again lends further support for the above proposal of what anti-branes are. In fact it has already been noted that also certain knot invariants for $`U(N|M)`$ theory are the same as that of $`U(NM)`$ theory , though some subtleties arise when $`N=M`$ . Apriori the above argument about ‘t Hooft diagram only implies the equality of partition functions and it is perfectly consistent with existence of certain observables of $`U(N|M)`$ theory which are not present in the $`U(NM)`$ theory. Also if we expand about certain connections where the connection in $`U(M)U(N)`$ are not equivalent, apriori there is no reason for the equivalence even of the partition function, with that of $`U(NM)`$. This would then correspond to a situation where the branes and anti-branes cannot perfectly cancel one another even if the “tachyon mode” is turned on.

Note that the above discussion naturally generalizes to the case of topological B-models where one ends up getting holomorphic Chern-Simons theory with supergroup $`U(N|M)`$. Also one can formulate the reduction of this to lower dimensional holomorphic branes, and for example, study the topological version of the D0 branes dissolving in D2 branes.

5. Topological Analog of Brane/anti-Brane Annihilation

It is natural to ask if there is any topological analog of tachyon condensation and brane/anti-brane annihilation along the lines proposed by Sen . At first the answer might appear to be in the negative, because the field which would have played the role of the tachyon is fermionic 1-form and it cannot take a vev. However upon closer inspection, as we will now argue the “tachyon field” has a more subtle presence in the Chern-Simons theory. We will identify a field whose vev plays the role of the vev for the tachyon field. However, there is no potential for the scalar field and in particular it is not tachyonic in the usual sense.

For the case at hand, namely the Chern-Simons gauge theory with supergroup $`U(N|M)`$, just as in the case of ordinary gauge group $`U(N)`$, the open string field theory including the ghosts needed for BRST gauge fixing, leads to replacing $`𝒜`$ by an arbitrary degree form, with alternating statistics. For the diagonal blocks of $`U(N|M)`$ the even forms are fermionic and odd forms are bosonic, whereas for off-diagonal block the odd forms of $`𝒜`$ are fermionic and the even forms are bosonic. We will consider this extended theory, and treat all components of the extended $`𝒜`$ field on the same footing. In particular there are scalar bosonic ghost fields in the off-diagonal blocks. These fields will play the role of the “topological tachyon fields”. In fact we will now demonstrate that turning them on is allowed (i.e. can lead to new classical solutions) and in case of $`N=M`$ and when the branes have the same gauge field configuration, trivializes the string observables.

Even though we have scalar analogs of tachyon fields, there are no scalar potentials for them. However we can still ask whether there are any other vacua for Chern-Simons theory, by turning them on3 Strictly speaking this makes sense in non-compact situation, where constant mode fluctuation is not allowed. We can assume we are in the non-compact case, for example when $`L=R^3`$ in a non-compact CY such as $`𝐂^3`$–but one can also make sense of it in the compact case as field configurations which satisfy the equations of motion, by first integrating over the non-zero modes in the path-integral.. We would like to identify the Chern-Simons analog of other critical points of tachyon potential. This means finding other classical solutions for the open string field theory. To satisfy the equations of motion, is equivalent to finding a vacuum which has a BRST operator $`Q`$ which squares to zero: $`Q^2=0`$. As discussed before, this is equivalent to considering gauge field configurations where the curvature is zero, i.e.,

$$Q^2=0d_𝒜^2=(d+[𝒜,.])^2=0=0$$

Note that $``$ is the curvature of the connection for the supergroup $`U(N|M)`$. Moreover, if we allow the bosonic ghosts also to take vev, this is equivalent to allowing the connection to have vevs for the odd forms in the diagonal blocks, and vevs for the even forms in the off-diagonal blocks.

Let us give an example of how this works: Consider two gauge field configurations for the bosonic parts of the supergroup $`U(N)\times U(M)`$, characterized by connections $`A=A_N+A_M`$. Suppose there is a covariantly constant field $`\varphi `$ in the bifundamental $`(N,\overline{M})`$, i.e.,

$$d_A\varphi =d\varphi +A_N\varphi \varphi A_M=0$$

If we give a vev to this off diagonal component of $`U(N|M)`$ at degree 0, i.e. the “bosonic ghost field”, then we have another vacuum for the Chern-Simons theory with the gauge supergroup. In particular expanding to quadratic order, we can identify the new BRST operator

$$Q=d_𝒜=d_A+[\varphi ,.]$$

where written in this form we view $`\varphi `$ as an upper block off-diagonal matrix valued element of $`U(N|M)`$ adjoint representation. Note that $`Q^2=0`$ and we can thus view this as a new vacuum of the theory. This is also consistent with the viewpoint advocated in  for cohomological aspects of brane/anti-brane annihilation and its relation to derived category.

The physical states in the new vacuum will in general be different, because now we have a different cohomology problem defined by $`Q`$. Let us specialize to the following case: Suppose we have equal number of branes and anti-branes $`N=M`$ and assume we have the same flat $`U(N)`$ gauge connection on both types of branes. Then we have a natural choice for $`\varphi `$, namely the identity $`N\times N`$ matrix. We will identify giving a vev to this field as “brane/anti-brane annihilation”, which is the analog of tachyon condensation in this topological setup. As a test of this idea we show that the open string field theory BRST operator $`Q`$ for this new vacuum after giving a vev to $`\varphi `$ trivializes the cohomology elements of the old $`Q`$. In particular suppose we originally have a number of deformations for the flat bundle for both $`U(N)`$’s, which by our assumption they are the same. Restricted to each of these modes the new $`Q`$ operator will reduce to $`Q=[\varphi ,.]`$. It is easy to see that with respect to an upper block off-diagonal identity matrix $`\varphi `$ all the cohomolgy disappears: We can view the $`(N|N)`$ adjoint as consisting of four natural $`(N\times N)`$ blocks. We now show that the new $`Q`$ pairs up these four blocks. The lower off diagonal block is not $`Q`$ invariant (as it does not commute with $`\varphi `$). It instead gives the equal sum of the two diagonal blocks. On the other hand $`Q`$ acting on the opposite combination of the two diagonal blocks will give all upper block off-diagonal combinations. Thus all the cohomologically non-trivial elements are now paired up and we have no non-trivial cohomology left, as expected for a theory which is to be identified with a trivial theory. Note that we have already explained why the partition function will be trivial, when the brane/anti-brane bundles are expanded near the trivial connection. That argument can be extented to the case where the connections in the two $`U(N)`$’s are the same. But consider a situation where $`L`$ has a non-trivial $`\pi _1`$. In that case we can consider inequivalent configurations for the two gauge groups, and from the perspective of ‘t Hooft diagram, there is no reason why such configurations should give vanishing contribution to the partition function. It is amusing that precisely for these cases there is no covariantly constant identity matrix $`\varphi `$ (i.e. precisely for the case where we do not expect complete annihilation there is also no reason for the partition function to vanish).

6. Potential Applications to Superstring Compactifications

As discussed in , topological strings with branes wrapped over Lagrangian submanifolds compute certain terms in the effective theory of type IIA strings compactified on Calabi-Yau manifolds with partially wrapped D6 branes, filling the spacetime. Also, as discussed there, in the context of compact Calabi-Yau we have to consider equal number of branes and anti-branes, and for some such cases, a large $`N`$ dual was proposed. Given that we have defined what topological superstrings are in the context of branes and anti-branes, it is natural to ask if there are similar terms in the type IIA superstring context with wrapped branes and anti-branes that they compute. This of course would sound very remarkable given that this would correspond to some exact computations in a non-supersymmetric background. However, this may not be as surprising. For example, the net number of branes is a computation which one expects to be able to do exactly in the non-supersymmetric cases. Also superpotential terms are another example of what branes and anti-branes give rise to that should be exactly computable (similar to turning on RR fluxes in Calabi-Yau, which for a generic moduli is not supersymmetric, but give rise to computable superpotential terms). The terms that the topological superstrings compute in the cases including branes and anti-branes must be generalizations of such terms and it would be very interesting to precisely identify them.

I would like to thank the hospitality of the string theory group at Rutgers University. In particular I have greatly benefitted from discussions with M. Douglas, M. Marino and G. Moore. I would also like to thank N. Berkovits, K. Hori, S. Katz and I.M. Singer for valuable discussions.

This research is supported in part by NSF grants PHY-9802709 and DMS 9709694.

References

relax E. Witten, “On the structure of the topological phase of two dimensional gravity,” Nucl. Phys. B340 (1990) 281. relax D. Ghoshal and C. Vafa, “c=1 string as the topological theory of the conifold,” Nucl. Phys. B45 (1995) 121. relax E. Witten, “Chern-Simons theory as a string theory,” hep-th/9207094. relax M. Douglas, “D-branes, categories and N=1 supersymmetry,” hep-th/0011017. relax S. Axelrod and I.M. Singer, “Chern-Simons perturbation theory–II,” J. Diff. Geom. 39 (1994) 173. relax J.-S. Park, “Topological Open p-Branes,” hep-th/0012141. relax E. Witten, “D-branes and K-theory,” JHEP9812 (1998) 019. relax P. Kraus and F. Larsen, “Boundary string field theory of the DDbar system,” hep-th/0012198. relax T. Takayanagi, S. Terashima and T. Uesugi, “Brane-Antibrane action from boundary string field theory,” hep-th/0012210. relax M. Alishahiha, H. Ita and Y. Oz, “On superconnections and the tachyon effective action,” hep-th/0012222. relax N. Berkovits, C. Vafa and E. Witten, “Conformal field theory of AdS background with Ramond-Ramond flux,” JHEP9903 (1999) 018. relax J.H. Horne, “Skein relations and Wilson loops in Chern-Simons gauge theory,” Nucl. Phys. B334 (1990) 669. relax M. Bourdeau, E.J. Mlawer, H. Riggs and H.J. Schnitzer, “The quasirational fusion structure of $`SU(M|N)`$ Chern-Simons and W-Z-W theories,” Nucl. Phys. B372 (1992) 303. relax L. Rozansky and H. Saleur, “Reidemeister torsion, the Alexander polynomial and $`U(1,1)`$ Chern-Simons theory,” J. Geom. Phys. 13 (1994) 105. relax A. Sen, “Tachyon condensation on the brane antibrane system,” JHEP 9808 (1998) 012. relax C. Vafa, “Superstrings and topological strings at large $`N`$,” hep-th/0008142.


text:
# Observation of Andreev Surface Bound States in the 3-K Phase region of Sr2RuO4

\[

## Abstract

The tunneling spectrum of the superconducting phase with $`T_\mathrm{c}3.0`$ K has been measured in the Ru-embedded region of Sr2RuO4 using cleaved junctions. A sharp zero-bias conductance peak (ZBCP) has been observed below 3 K. All characteristics of this ZBCP suggest that it originates from Andreev surface bound states, indicating that the pairing in the 3-K phase is also non-$`s`$-wave. Below the bulk $`T_\mathrm{c}`$ of Sr2RuO4 ($`1.5`$ K), a bell-shaped ZBCP was found. This supports that there is a phase transition in the 3-K phase region near the bulk $`T_\mathrm{c}`$.

\]

Several recent experiments  have firmly established the non-$`s`$-wave nature of superconductivity in the layered perovskite Sr2RuO4 . In particular, the NMR experiment  has provided strong evidence that bulk Sr2RuO4 is a spin-triplet superconductor, as theoretically anticipated . The intrinsic superconducting critical temperature ($`T_{\mathrm{c0}}`$) of Sr2RuO4 is 1.5 K . While searching for the optimal crystal growth conditions, an eutectic solidification system, Ru metal embedded in the primary phase of Sr2RuO4, was found. An intriguing observation was that the $`T_\mathrm{c}`$ of this eutectic system was enhanced up to 3 K . It has been suggested that the enhanced superconductivity at 3 K most probably originate at the interface region between the Ru inclusion and Sr2RuO4 single crystal .

However, the nature of the 3-K phase, as well as the origin of the $`T_\mathrm{c}`$ enhancement by Ru embedding, has not been clarified. Addressing these issues is certainly important, as it may provide new insight into the mechanism leading to $`p`$-wave superconductivity in bulk Sr2RuO4. The experimental study for this phase is difficult to carry out using conventional techniques such as specific heat and NMR due to its small volume fraction. However, tunneling spectroscopy measurements, a powerful probe for the study of superconductivity, is not subject to this limitation. If the 3-K phase is unconventional, a zero-bias conductance peak (ZBCP) is expected in the tunneling spectrum as in the case of high-$`T_c`$ cuprates  and that of heavy-fermion superconductors . This ZBCP is a result of the surface low-energy mid-gap states formed via Andreev reflection (also referred to as surface Andreev bound states (ABS)) , which can only exist when the phase of the pairing amplitude depends on the direction.

In this Letter, we report results of our tunneling measurements on $`c`$-axis junctions prepared by cleaving Ru-containing Sr2RuO4 single crystals along the $`ab`$ plane. We observed a ZBCP below 3K, attributable to ABSs, indicating that the 3-K phase is also non-$`s`$-wave.

The single crystals of Sr2RuO4 were grown by a floating-zone technique . The onset $`T_\mathrm{c}`$ measured by AC susceptibility $`\chi _{\mathrm{ac}}`$ was 1.40 K. Careful examination by an optical microscope revealed a few scattered Ru inclusions in parts of the crystal of this batch. The Ru inclusions are of needle-like shape with diameter of 1 $`\mu `$m and length of 10-30 $`\mu `$m.

Several $`c`$-axis cleaved junctions were prepared from this batch of crystals. The cleaved crystals were fixed tightly by a Teflon frame with a thermal contraction coefficient much larger than Sr2RuO4, or by an insulated metal frame with a set screw. Among these junctions, we observed two generic types of tunneling spectrum of d$`I`$/d$`V`$: One showing a ZBCP associated with the 3-K superconducting phase (reproducibly observed in three junctions), and the other a dip feature at zero bias unrelated to the superconductivity. From our analysis given below, it can be seen that Ru-inclusions are involved at the cleaved interfaces in the former, denoted by SRO/Ru/SRO below. The data presented below for the SRO/Ru/SRO junction were obtained on the same sample.

All current-voltage ($`IV`$) characteristics, as well junction resistance $`R_\mathrm{J}(T)`$, were measured by a four-point probe in a 3He cryostat. To reduce heating, the $`IV`$ curve was measured by d.c. pulsed-current method with a typical duration of 50 ms followed by a 2s delay between two successive pulses. The tunneling conductance d$`I`$/d$`V`$ was computed numerically from $`IV`$ curves.

Figure 1 shows the normalized $`R_\mathrm{J}(T)`$ of the SRO/Ru/SRO measured at 1 mA (At this current, the voltage was found to be below 0.08 meV for $`T<`$3 K.). For comparison, $`R_\mathrm{J}(T)`$ of a Ru-free $`c`$-axis SRO/SRO junction, again measured at 1 mA, is also shown. For the latter, the $`R_\mathrm{J}(T)`$ becomes insulating below 25 K, suggesting that the interface must have a significantly high potential barrier. Since no clear feature associated with superconductivity at the $`T_\mathrm{c}`$ of the 1.5-K phase is seen, superconductivity must be strongly suppressed at the surface of Sr2RuO4, resulting in a non-superconducting surface layer (NSSL). The presence of such a NSSL is supported by results obtained on all other junctions we have studied so far, including Pb/Sr2RuO4 , Au/SrTiO3/Sr2RuO4, Au/Sr2RuO4, and In/Sr2RuO4 junctions  and STM studies of other group . The d$`I`$/d$`V`$ tunneling spectra of SRO/SRO and other normal-metal/SRO junctions show a sharp dip at zero bias, which was found to be unrelated to superconductivity of Sr2RuO4 .

The SRO/Ru/SRO junction, however, exhibits behavior distinctly different from that of the SRO/SRO junction. $`R_\mathrm{J}(T)`$ showed a metallic behavior down to 5 K, which is in sharp contrast to the bulk resistivity along the $`c`$-axis $`\rho _\mathrm{c}(T)`$ of clean Sr2RuO4 . Below 5 K, the $`R_\mathrm{J}(T)`$ showed a slight up-turn, which is then followed by a noticeable drop at about 2.80 K. When this drop was suppressed by a magnetic field (inset (a) of Fig. 1), the $`R_\mathrm{J}(T)`$ showed a insulating behavior at low temperatures, indicating the barrier resistance in this junction was larger than the bulk resistance, at least at low temperatures. Therefore, a clear drop in $`R_\mathrm{J}(T)`$ indicate that there must be Ru inclusions at the interface. As will be discussed below, this drop originated from the surface ABSs, which are capable of carrying currents.

The inset (b) of Fig. 1 shows the schematic of SRO/Ru/SRO junction inferred from above analysis. This picture is also strongly supported by direct examination of the cleaved surfaces of the crystals by an optical microscope, which revealed the presence of scattered Ru inclusions. The Ru inclusions at the cleaved interface were in contact with the NSSL (gray regions) due to unavoidable mismatch between the two cleaved crystals. The overall tunnel barrier around Ru inclusion (thin lines at the interface) must be lower than the rest of the junction where two tunnel barriers from both NSSL (thick lines) are involved, making our tunneling measurements essentially a local probe for areas surrounding the Ru inclusions. Since the contact resistance between the Ru inclusion and the bulk Sr2RuO4 should be smaller in comparison with that between Ru and the NSSL , the voltage drop, which defines the energy scale in the tunneling spectrum, is mainly at the interface between the Ru and NSSL. The Ru inclusions are superconducting by the virtue of the proximity effect . This is actually consistent with the fact that the onset temperature of drop in $`R_\mathrm{J}(T)`$ of the SRO/Ru/SRO junction is lower than that in the bulk, as shown in the inset (a) of Fig. 1.

Figure 2 shows the tunneling spectra of d$`I`$/d$`V`$ for the SRO/Ru/SRO junction at various temperatures. A ZBCP occurs below almost the same temperature where the $`R_\mathrm{J}(T)`$ shows a drop. The height of the ZBCP increases with decreasing temperature. Below 1.40 K (the bulk $`T_c`$), a bell-shaped spectrum with a sharp peak at zero bias emerges.

This bell-shaped feature can be suppressed by applying a magnetic field of 0.06 T ($`B//c`$), as shown in Fig.3. This field is approximately the upper critical field along the $`c`$ axis, $`B_{c2}^{//c}`$(0), of the primary phase with $`T_\mathrm{c}`$ = 1.4 K . Additionally, Fig. 3 shows that the sharp ZBCP under 0.06 T decreases in height with increasing temperature, disappearing around the $`T_\mathrm{c}`$ of the 3-K phase (2.5 K at $`B`$=0.06 T). This suggests that the sharp ZBCP represents an intrinsic feature of the tunneling spectrum of the 3-K phase.

The field dependence of the tunneling spectra of the SRO/Ru/SRO junction at 0.5 K is shown in Fig. 4. The ZBCP is completely suppressed as the field increases up to the $`B_{c2}^{//c}`$ of the 3-K phase at 0.5 K (=0.9T). This further demonstrates that the observed sharp ZBCP results from superconductivity of the 3-K phase. Furthermore, as the ZBCP is fully suppressed, the saturated normal-state background ($`B>`$0.9 T) resembles the tunneling spectra of Au/SRO  and SRO/SRO as mentioned above, providing further support to our picture for SRO/Ru/SRO junction as shown in Fig. 1.

For the origin of ZBCP, we note that in principle the ABS is not the only explanation. Several other mechanisms can result in a ZBCP, including: (a) supercurrent leakage; (b) Copper-pair-tunneling caused by proximity effect ; (c) Reflectionless tunneling in high-transmittance junctions ; and (d) Magnetic and Kondo scattering .

The possibility of (a) is inconsistent with the large voltage scale involved in the ZBCP we observed. Furthermore, our earlier tunneling measurements on a HgIn/Sr2RuO4 junction revealed a ZBCP similar to that in the cleaved junction when HgIn was driven normal . The mechanisms (b), (c) and (d) are not relevant to our observations as well. For (b), the ZBCP caused by the proximity effect can be suppressed by a field much smaller than critical field. For (c), the ZBCP occurs only in junctions with high transmittance, always accompanied by a gap-like feature, a peak in the spectrum. For (d), the ZBCP is uncorrelated with the occurrence of superconductivity and must show a Zeeman splitting under magnetic fields. These features clearly do not fit into our observations. As a result, we conclude that the ZBCP observed in the SRO/Ru/SRO junction results from the ABS. This is only possible if the 3-K phase in Sr2RuO4 is also a non-$`s`$-wave superconductor.

The experimental results presented above clearly indicate that the ABSs formed on the surface of Ru inclusions have two distinct spectra depending on whether the bulk Sr2RuO4 is superconducting, which suggests that the 3-K phase has a different pairing symmetry from the 1.5-K bulk phase. This is consistent with the result of recent phenomelogical theory by Sigrist et al . Below we will discuss the physical origin of these two types of spectrum, and the nature of the crossover.

The bell-shaped feature seen below 1.4 K (Fig.2) is similar to the broad ZBCP observed in Ru-free Sr2RuO4 via point contact . It was suggested that the broad ZBCP originated from the $`p`$-wave state with a $`d`$-vector in the form, $`d(k)=z(k_x\pm ik_y)`$ (fully gapped). Such a $`d`$-vector will result in ABSs with a continuous spectrum centered at zero energy . The average over many sub-gap states will lead to the broadening of the ZBCP.

The sharp ZBCP is intrinsic to the 3-K phase (see Fig. 3 and 4). The conductance appears to diverge as the energy approaches zero, suggesting that the ABSs of the 3-K phase are concentrated at zero energy. This is in good agreement with the suggestion that the 3-K phase corresponds to a $`p`$-wave line-node state , since a $`p`$-wave pairing with a line node has been shown theoretically to lead to a zero-energy ABS . The $`p`$-wave states with a line-node can be presented with a $`d`$-vector in the form of $`zk_x`$, $`zk_y`$, or the sum of both. The physical origin of the presence of line node in the 3-K phase can be ascribed to the lower symmetry on the surface of Ru inclusions. On the other hand, it should be mentioned that the possibility of $`d`$-wave for the 3-K phase can not be excluded completely only from our data, since the $`d`$-wave superconductors also have a similar zero-energy ABS, leading to a sharp ZBCP .

The crossover of the shape of the ZBCP below the bulk $`T_\mathrm{c}`$ may, in principle, be understood in two different ways: (1) The order parameter of the 1.5-K phase with $`d(k)=z(k_x\pm ik_y)`$ may penetrate into the 3-K phase region and in turn causes a coexistence of order parameters of two phases at $`T<1.4`$ K in the Ru inclusions through the proximity effect. (2) There is a phase transition  associated with a time-reversal symmetry breaking process: the 3-K phase with a line-node transforms into a state with an order parameter close to that of the bulk, $`d(k)=z(k_x\pm i\alpha k_y)`$ at about bulk $`T_\mathrm{c}`$(=1.4 K).

The normalized temperature dependence of the height of the ZBCP ($`\mathrm{\Delta }G/G_0`$) under different fields shown in the inset of Fig. 3 appears to support the phase transition picture. The $`\mathrm{\Delta }G/G_0`$ in zero field can be fitted to a logarithmic $`T`$-dependence above 1.4 K, below which the $`\mathrm{\Delta }G/G_0`$ increases much more slowly than the logarithmic $`T`$-dependence. This appears to counter the picture of coexistence of two order parameters in which the $`\mathrm{\Delta }G/G_0`$ should increase faster than the logarithmic $`T`$-dependence as the second order parameter is added below the $`T_\mathrm{c}`$ of the bulk phase. However, this observation is consistent with the phase transition picture. At $`B`$=0.06 T, the bulk superconductivity of the 1.5-K phase should be suppressed , however $`\mathrm{\Delta }G/G_0`$ still showed a downturn from the logarithmic $`T`$-dependence below 0.8 K, suggesting that the characteristic field for this crossover is slightly higher than 0.06 T. This is consistent with the fact that a slight broad feature in d$`I`$/d$`V`$ is still visible below 0.8 K under 0.06 T (see Fig. 3). The $`\mathrm{\Delta }G/G_0`$ under 0.2 T can be fitted well with logarithmic $`T`$-dependence. The appearance of the central sharp peak below 1.4 K suggests that the crossover associated the phase transition may be incomplete.

Finally, we note that the ZBCP observed in Sr2RuO4 did not split under field as in d-wave superconductors . In our experiments, the junction interface formed by cleaving was nominally perpendicular to $`c`$-axis, with the Andreev reflection occurring in the in-plane direction in order to form an ABS. This is only possible when the surface of the Ru-inclusion was not smooth. Therefore, it is not surprising that a splitting was not found in our spectra. Moreover, for 1.5-K bulk phase, the spectrum of ABS corresponding to $`d(k)=z(k_x\pm ik_y)`$ is continuous. The field-splitting of individual ABSs will be smeared out  even for an ideally smooth interface.

In conclusion, a ZBCP associated with the 3-K superconducting phase in Sr2RuO4 has been observed in cleaved junctions. This ZBCP can be ascribed to surface ABSs, providing the first experimental evidence that the 3-K superconducting phase in Sr2RuO4 is also non-s-wave, possibly a $`p`$-wave state. In addition, we have observed a crossover in the shape of the ZBCP around bulk $`T_\mathrm{c}`$, which has provided a support that there is a phase transition in the 3-K phase region near bulk $`T_\mathrm{c}`$.

We would like to acknowledge valuable discussions with M. Sigrist and J. Sauls, and technical assistance from M.A. Rosario. The work is supported in the US by the NSF through grant DMR-9974327.


text:
# Imprinted Networks as Chiral Pumps

## Abstract

We investigate the interaction between a chirally imprinted network and a solvent of chiral molecules. We find, a liquid crystalline polymer network is preferentially swollen by one component of a racemic solvent. This ability to separate is linked to the chiral order parameter of the network, and can be reversibly controlled via temperature or a mechanical deformation. It is maximal near the point at which the network loses its imprinted structure. One possible practical application of this effect would be a mechanical device for sorting mixed chiral molecules.

PACS numbers: 61.30.-v, 61.41.+e, 78.20.Ek

Chirality is of vital importance in pharmacology and chemical biology. Sorting right handed from left handed molecules is a common and yet tricky process . Traditionally, mixtures of chiral molecules are separated using other chiral molecules with intrinsic chirality  which is often difficult to control. Liquid crystalline elastomers with an imprinted chirality offers an alternative solution.

Recently we proposed a theory of chiral imprinting in liquid crystalline polymer networks  where nematic polymers are crosslinked in the presence of chiral solvent, that is when they have an induced cholesteric phase. Subsequent removal of the solvent, and thus of all the intrinsically chiral material, can either leave behind a cholesteric network or see the network lose its chiral structure, depending on the strength of a chiral order parameter, $`\alpha `$ (see below). Above a critical point at $`\alpha _c=2/\pi `$, director twist is lost in a second order manner. Experiments have shown conclusively that imprinting can be achieved . The mechanical behaviour of such imprinted solids and similarly cholesteric nematic networks has been analysed . Imposed strain induces the director to rotate and eventually eliminates twist. Thus, mechanical deformation can modify and even destroy the chiral structure. For an imprinted network, this can mean the complete loss of chirality (in contrast to intrinsic materials that would thereby simply enter an untwisted chiral nematic phase, N\*). Imprinted networks hence offer chirality that can be controlled externally. In this article, we calculate the interaction between the imprinted chiral elastomer and a racemic solvent which is used to swell the network. We show that the network has the ability to sort the the components of a mixture according their handedness, and this ability is a direct result of a chiral order parameter controllable by simply deforming the sample. This gives rise to the possibility of mechanical devices to sort a racemic solvent.

In a cholesteric, the local order is similar to that of a uniaxial nematic with director $`\underset{¯}{n}`$ (which then takes angles $`\theta _o=q_ox`$ with respect to $`\underset{¯}{z}`$ in the $`yz`$ plane as it advances in a helix). A model for the total free network energy per chain, $`F_n`$, in a nematic elastomer is a simple generalisation of classical Gaussian rubber elasticity:

$$F_n=\frac{k_BT}{2}Tr\left[\underset{¯}{\underset{¯}{l}}_o\underset{¯}{\underset{¯}{\lambda }}^T\underset{¯}{\underset{¯}{l}}^1\underset{¯}{\underset{¯}{\lambda }}\right].$$
(1)
The reduced molecular shape tensors $`\underset{¯}{\underset{¯}{l}}_o`$ and $`\underset{¯}{\underset{¯}{l}}`$ before and after deformation record the director and the intrinsic anisotropy, $`r`$: $`\underset{¯}{\underset{¯}{l}}_o=(r1)\underset{¯}{n}_o\underset{¯}{n}_o+\underset{¯}{\underset{¯}{I}}`$ and (the inverse) $`\underset{¯}{\underset{¯}{l}}^1=(\frac{1}{r}1)\underset{¯}{n}\underset{¯}{n}+\underset{¯}{\underset{¯}{I}}`$.

As a result of swelling, we expect the deformation tensor $`\underset{¯}{\underset{¯}{\lambda }}_d`$ to consist of a uniform expansion and a uniaxial, volume-preserving deformation along the pitch axis, $`\underset{¯}{x}`$:

$$\underset{¯}{\underset{¯}{\lambda }}_d=\mathrm{\Phi }^{1/3}\left(\lambda ^{1/2}\underset{¯}{\underset{¯}{I}}+(\lambda \lambda ^{1/2})\underset{¯}{x}\underset{¯}{x}\right),$$
(2)
reflecting that, on coarse graining, the cholesteric is uniaxial about the pitch axis. $`\mathrm{\Phi }`$ is the volume fraction of network after swelling. The volume $`V_o`$ of the network increases to $`V_o/\mathrm{\Phi }`$ with the additional solvent.

Substituting (2) and (3) into (1) leads to:

$$\frac{2\mathrm{\Phi }^{2/3}F_n}{k_BT}=\frac{1}{\lambda }\frac{(r1)^2}{r}\mathrm{sin}^2(\theta q_ox)+\lambda ^2+\frac{2}{\lambda }.$$
(3)
The $`\mathrm{sin}^2`$ term gives the director anchoring to the network. For small rotations, $`\omega `$, relative to the matrix it gives the $`D_1\omega ^2`$ term of the de Gennes continuum mechanics approach . Note that without network anchoring, $`F_n/\lambda `$ leads to $`\lambda =1`$ and there is no tendency to relax shape (at a given dilation). From the $`\mathrm{sin}^2`$ term, we deduce that the anchoring coefficient after swelling, $`\stackrel{~}{D}_1`$, is related to that before swelling $`D_1`$:

$$\stackrel{~}{D}_1=\frac{\mathrm{\Phi }^{1/3}}{\lambda }D_1;D_1=\frac{(r1)^2}{r}Y_o;$$
(4)
with the chain density defined as $`n_n=\frac{N}{V_o}`$, the network shear elastic constant being $`Y_o=n_nk_BT`$, and $`N`$ being the total number of chains.

In the Frank energy, $`F_f`$, we retain only twist:

$$\frac{2\mathrm{\Phi }}{V_oK_2}F_f=(\underset{¯}{n}\times \underset{¯}{n}+q)^2(d\theta /dx+q)^2.$$
(5)
For simplicity we assume the local nematic order, and therefore $`K_2`$, remain unchanged during swelling - for instance if the chiral solvent has the same nematogenic properties as the polymer’s own nematogenic elements. The pitch wave vector $`q`$ will be different from the originally imprinted $`q_o`$ due to deformation $`\mathrm{\Phi }^{1/3}/\lambda `$ along the $`x`$ axis from swelling and shape change. The solvent chirality, $`q_s`$, further modifies $`q`$:

$$q=\frac{\mathrm{\Phi }^{1/3}}{\lambda }q_oq_s(2\varphi 1).$$
(6)
Thus the first term corresponds to geometry and the second to the left-right imbalance of the solvent; the volume fractions of the left and right handed solvents are $`\varphi _l=\varphi `$ and $`\varphi _r=1\varphi `$. The difference from racemic, $`\varphi 1/2`$, allows the twist, $`\pm q_s`$, of the enantiomers to express itself.

Imprinting is then a competition between the elastic anchoring energy, $`F_n`$, which resists director rotation away from the direction in which it was formed, and the Frank energy, $`F_f`$, which drives $`d\theta /dx`$ towards the current chiral twist $`q`$. If $`q`$ is different from the value $`q_o`$ remembered by the network, then twist towards this new value may occur depending upon whether the anchoring, $`\stackrel{~}{D}_1q^2`$ or the Frank, $`K_2`$ energy prevails. This balance is quantified by $`\stackrel{~}{\alpha }`$, the geometric ratio of the two energy scales:

$$\stackrel{~}{\alpha }=\sqrt{K_2/\stackrel{~}{D}_1}q=\frac{\sqrt{\lambda }q}{\mathrm{\Phi }^{1/6}q_o}\alpha _o;\alpha _o=\sqrt{K_2/D_1}q_o.$$

In reference , chiral solvent was replaced altogether, leaving a Frank penalty $`K_2q_o^2`$. Imprinting was successful for $`\alpha _o<2/\pi `$ and the twists were retained. Above $`2/\pi `$ one must optimise over $`\theta `$-profiles to find the minimal free energy, and some untwisting occurs (the efficiency of imprinting is $`<1`$, see figure 1).

Next we compare $`\stackrel{~}{\alpha }`$ with $`2/\pi `$ and examine the preferential absorption of one handedness over the other.

The mixing free energy density can be written as:

$`f_m`$ $`=`$ $`n_mk_BT[\chi _{lr}\varphi (1\varphi )(1\mathrm{\Phi })^2+\varphi (1\mathrm{\Phi })\mathrm{ln}\varphi +`$ (9)
$`(1\varphi )(1\mathrm{\Phi })\mathrm{ln}(1\varphi )+(1\mathrm{\Phi })\mathrm{ln}(1\mathrm{\Phi })+`$
$`\chi _{ln}\varphi (1\mathrm{\Phi })\mathrm{\Phi }+\chi _{rn}(1\varphi )(1\mathrm{\Phi })\mathrm{\Phi }]`$
where $`n_m=1/v_m`$ is the solvent number density (with $`v_m`$ the volume occupied by a single solvent molecule). The usual $`\chi `$ interaction parameters describe the interaction of left and right molecules with each other ($`lr`$) and with the network ($`ln`$ and $`rn`$). The latter are equal by symmetry if the network polymers are achiral. The free energy of the entire system is:

$$F=NF_n+F_f+\frac{V_o}{\mathrm{\Phi }}f_m.$$
(10)
As in the case of imprinting, we need to minimise energy over the profile of nematic director orientation $`\theta `$ as we go down the pitch axis. We can do this first since the mixing part does not contain $`\theta `$, and then we need to find the optimal $`\lambda `$. We do this separately for different regimes of imprinting parameter $`\stackrel{~}{\alpha }`$.

The small $`\stackrel{~}{\alpha }`$ limit. In this regime of high imprinting efficiency, the director distribution is preserved. Thus there is no $`D_1`$ penalty, but a Frank penalty for not having the currently desired twist $`q`$:

$$f(\varphi ,\lambda )=F\mathrm{\Phi }/V_o=\frac{K_2}{2}q^2+\frac{\mathrm{\Phi }^{1/3}Y_o}{2}(\lambda ^2+\frac{2}{\lambda })+f_m$$

where $`f_m=F_m\mathrm{\Phi }/V_o`$, and $`q`$ depends on solvent composition, see eq. (6). Minimising $`f`$ over $`\lambda `$ gives a 4th order polynomial equation in $`\lambda `$ (given the $`\lambda `$ dependence of $`q`$):

$$K_2\frac{qq_o}{\lambda ^2}+Y_o(\lambda \frac{1}{\lambda ^2})=0.$$
(11)
However, assuming the uniaxial relaxation $`ϵ=\lambda 1`$ is small, one can easily solve the above:

$$ϵ\frac{K_2}{Y_o}(\varphi ^{1/3}q_oq_s(2\varphi 1))q_o.$$
(12)
Typically, $`K_210^{11}\mathrm{N}`$, $`Y_o10^5\mathrm{Pa}`$ and $`q_{o,s}10^5\mathrm{m}^1`$ and it appears that the assumption of small $`ϵ`$ ($`10^3`$) applies to most materials. Note that the explicit $`\mathrm{\Phi }`$ dependence has vanished in this limit, and the shape relaxation is independent of the degree of swelling except indirectly through $`\varphi `$. Substituting $`\lambda 1`$ back, we have:

$$f(\varphi )=\frac{K_2}{2}\stackrel{~}{q}^2+\frac{3\mathrm{\Phi }^{1/3}}{2}Y_o+f_m$$
(13)
where $`\stackrel{~}{q}=\mathrm{\Phi }^{1/3}q_oq_s(2\varphi 1)`$. The chemical potential difference $`\mathrm{\Delta }\mu =\mu _l\mu _r=(1/[n_m(1\mathrm{\Phi })])f/\varphi `$ is:

$`{\displaystyle \frac{\mathrm{\Delta }\mu }{k_BT}}=\eta +\chi _{lr}(12\varphi )(1\mathrm{\Phi })+\mathrm{ln}{\displaystyle \frac{\varphi }{1\varphi }}`$ (14)
where $`\eta =2K_2\stackrel{~}{q}q_s/[n_mk_BT(1\mathrm{\Phi })]`$. In the reservoir (no network, $`\mathrm{\Phi }0`$, $`\varphi _l\varphi _o`$ and $`\varphi _r1\varphi _o`$), the mixing energy density $`f_r`$ is:

$$\frac{f_r}{n_mk_BT}=\chi _{lr}\varphi _o(1\varphi _o)+\varphi _o\mathrm{ln}\varphi _o+(1\varphi _o)\mathrm{ln}(1\varphi _o)$$

which yields the chemical potential difference:

$$\frac{\mathrm{\Delta }\mu _r}{k_BT}=\frac{1}{n_mk_BT}\frac{f_r}{\varphi _o}=\chi _{lr}(12\varphi _o)+\mathrm{ln}\frac{\varphi _o}{1\varphi _o}.$$

We now equate this difference to that of the network:

$`\chi _{lr}(12\varphi _o)+\mathrm{ln}{\displaystyle \frac{\varphi _o}{1\varphi _o}}=`$ (15)
$`\eta +\chi _{lr}(12\varphi )(1\mathrm{\Phi })+\mathrm{ln}{\displaystyle \frac{\varphi }{1\varphi }}.`$ (16)
Suppose the $`\chi _{lr}`$ terms are negligible and that $`K_2\stackrel{~}{q}q_sn_mk_BT`$, i.e. $`\eta `$ is small compared to $`1`$. We then have for the l-concentration, $`\varphi `$, in the network, given $`\varphi _o`$ in the reservoir:

$$\varphi \frac{1\eta }{1\eta \varphi _o}\varphi _o$$
(17)
We should also equate the osmotic pressures ($`F/\mathrm{\Phi }`$) to determine the equilibrium values of $`\mathrm{\Phi }`$, in addition to the $`\varphi `$ obtained above. In practice, $`\mathrm{\Phi }`$ is readily fixed experimentally; we take it as a known system parameter.

The large $`\stackrel{~}{\alpha }`$ limit. In this regime ($`\stackrel{~}{\alpha }2/\pi `$) of low imprinting efficiency, the director unwinds to the currently desired twist $`q`$. There is then no Frank penalty but a $`D_1`$ penalty since the anchoring has been violated:

$$f(\varphi ,\lambda )=F\mathrm{\Phi }/V_o=\frac{\stackrel{~}{D}_1}{4}+\frac{\mathrm{\Phi }^{1/3}}{2}Y_o(\lambda ^2+\frac{2}{\lambda })+f_m.$$

Minimisation over $`\lambda `$ yields $`\stackrel{~}{\lambda }=\left[(r+1)^2/4r\right]^{1/3}`$ and the free energy:

$$f(\varphi )=\frac{3\mathrm{\Phi }^{1/3}Y_o}{2}\left[\frac{(r+1)^2}{4r}\right]^{2/3}+f_m,$$
(18)
from which it follows that:

$`{\displaystyle \frac{\mathrm{\Delta }\mu }{k_BT}}=\chi _{lr}(12\varphi )(1\mathrm{\Phi })+\mathrm{ln}{\displaystyle \frac{\varphi }{1\varphi }}.`$ (19)
Equating the chemical potential difference to $`\mathrm{\Delta }\mu _r`$ leads to the equilibrium value of $`\varphi `$. If we assume that the $`\chi _{lr}`$ term is small so that $`\chi _{lr}^2`$ and higher order terms in $`\chi _{lr}`$ can be ignored, then the network $`\varphi `$, is close to that, $`\varphi _o`$, in the reservoir:

$$\varphi /\varphi _o1+\chi _{lr}(12\varphi _o)(1\varphi _o)\mathrm{\Phi }.$$
(20)
The intermediate $`\stackrel{~}{\alpha }`$ regime. In general, minimisation over the $`\theta `$-profile  gives:

$$f(\varphi ,\lambda )=g(\stackrel{~}{\alpha })\stackrel{~}{D}_1/2+\frac{\mathrm{\Phi }^{1/3}}{2}Y_o(\lambda ^2+\frac{2}{\lambda })+f_m$$
(21)
with the profile free energy $`g(\stackrel{~}{\alpha })`$ given by:

$`g(\stackrel{~}{\alpha })`$ $`=`$ $`\stackrel{~}{\alpha }^2\mathrm{for}\stackrel{~}{\alpha }<2/\pi `$ (22)
$`=`$ $`\stackrel{~}{\alpha }^2k^2+1\mathrm{for}\stackrel{~}{\alpha }>2/\pi `$ (23)
and where $`k`$ is related to $`\stackrel{~}{\alpha }`$ via $`\stackrel{~}{\alpha }=2(k)/\pi k`$, (see Fig. 2 for $`g`$ and its derivative). $``$ is the complete elliptic integral of the second kind. Minimisation of $`f(\varphi ,\lambda )`$ over $`\lambda `$ gives a condition for the optimum $`\lambda =\stackrel{~}{\lambda }`$:

$$\left[\frac{g}{\stackrel{~}{\alpha }}\frac{\stackrel{~}{\alpha }}{\lambda }\frac{g}{\lambda }\right]\frac{(r1)^2}{2\lambda r}+(\lambda \frac{1}{\lambda ^2})=0$$
(24)
Equating the network and reservoir exchange chemical potentials yields:

$$\gamma \frac{g}{\stackrel{~}{\alpha }}+\frac{1}{n_mk_BT}\frac{1}{1\mathrm{\Phi }}\frac{f_m}{\varphi }=\frac{1}{n_mk_BT}\frac{f_r}{\varphi _o}$$
(25)
where the prefactor $`\gamma `$ is given by

$$\gamma =\frac{(r1)^2}{r}\frac{n_n}{n_m}\frac{\mathrm{\Phi }^{1/6}}{1\mathrm{\Phi }}\frac{q_s}{q_o}\frac{\alpha _o}{\stackrel{~}{\lambda }^{1/2}}.$$

Substituting the expressions for $`f_m`$ and $`f_r`$ leads to

$`\gamma {\displaystyle \frac{g}{\stackrel{~}{\alpha }}}`$ $`+`$ $`\chi _{lr}(12\varphi )(1\mathrm{\Phi })+\mathrm{ln}{\displaystyle \frac{\varphi }{1\varphi }}`$ (26)
$`=`$ $`\chi _{lr}(12\varphi _o)+\mathrm{ln}{\displaystyle \frac{\varphi _o}{1\varphi _o}}`$ (27)
The first term on the left hand side of the equation is the contribution from the solvent-network interaction, which discriminates between the solvent handednesses. If $`\gamma `$ and $`\mathrm{\Phi }`$ tend to zero, we recover the situation where $`\varphi =\varphi _o`$.

Assuming that $`\mathrm{\Phi }`$ and $`\stackrel{~}{\lambda }`$ do not depend sensitively on $`\stackrel{~}{\alpha }`$ (which seems justified by the independence of $`\stackrel{~}{\lambda }`$ on $`\stackrel{~}{\alpha }`$ in both the small and large $`\stackrel{~}{\alpha }`$ limits), we can solve equation (25) by approximating $`\stackrel{~}{\lambda }1`$ and taking a set of typical illustrative parameters: $`\mathrm{\Phi }=0.9,\alpha _o=2/\pi ,r=2,n_n/n_m=0.2,q_s/q_o=1,\mathrm{and}\chi _{lr}=0.`$ The solution is shown in figure 3.

Fig. 3 shows that $`\varphi >\varphi _o`$ is generally satisfied: the solvent handedness which agrees with the network is favoured for absorption. One can utilize this to devise a “pumping” cycle for extracting one component from a racemic mixture. An elastomer, exposed to a given mixture, preferentially absorbs one of the components. The solvent mixture, recovered from stretching the swollen elastomer and thereby switching off its chiral effect, can then be used in the next cycle of purification.

If we choose to fix the reservoir concentration $`\varphi _o=0.5`$ and vary the network’s imprinting power at formation, $`\alpha _o`$, we can see from figure 4 that the maximal resolving power is obtained when the imprinting power of the resulting network is near the transition point $`\alpha =2/\pi `$.

Finally, we examine the effect of $`\chi _{lr}`$. It has been hitherto set to zero, that is we assume that any spontaneous tendency for the molecules of opposite handedness to demix is small. We see in figure 5 that a positive value of $`\chi _{lr}`$ favours demixing at small $`\varphi _o`$. Repeated cycles of our chiral pump will push $`\varphi `$ to the intersection of the curve with the line $`\varphi =\varphi _o`$.

We have shown that the chiral structures offered by imprinting allows one to preferentially absorb one handedness from a racemic mixture into a network. Moreover, since the chirality is mechanically tuneable and there is no material of intrinsic chirality in the network, one can then release by mechanical fields the absorbed solvent in which a chiral imbalance has been achieved.

We thank E. M. Terentjev and M. E. Cates for useful discussions. YM is grateful to Christ’s College, Cambridge for a Dow Senior Research Fellowship.


text:
# Generic junction conditions in brane-world scenarios

## I Introduction

Motivated by developments in string theory interest has recently focused on the idea that the 4D universe that we see is an embedding of a 3-brane in higher dimensional space-time, the general concept being known as a brane-world. In the most popular of these models the universe is hyper-surface, hyper-brane or co-dimension one object in a 5-dimensional background . The ordinary matter is localized as a distributional source, with an additional assumption that the extra dimension, which is also non compact, is $`Z_2`$ symmetric; both ideas being having phenomenological roots in string theory scenarios in the more formal contexts of D-branes  and orbifolds  respectively. An enormous amount of effort has been directed toward understanding how the gravity acts in a cosmological setting within the framework of these models using coordinate dependent  and coordinate independent  approaches. Central to all treatments of this problem are the junction conditions which must be imposed across the discontinuity induced by the brane.

Consider the general case of a $`p`$-brane ($`p`$ is the number of spatial dimensions of the brane, which has a $`(p+1)`$-dimensional world-volume) in an $`n`$-dimensional spacetime. The generic dynamical properties of such an object can be treated in a relatively straightfoward way (see, for example, ref. ) so long as the evolution is ‘passive’, that is, it takes place in a background which is fixed and unaffected by the presence of the brane, as would be the case to a very good approximation when the relevant coupling (gravitational, electromagnetic, or other) are sufficiently weak. In contrast if the ‘active’ effect of such couplings is sufficiently strong, there will be awkward singularity problems involving divergences which require non-trivial regularisation procedures whenever the co-dimension, $`np1`$, is equal to 2 or more, as in the recently clarified case  of a self-gravitating string (1-brane) in ordinary 4-dimensional spacetime.

The specific case of co-dimension one ($`n=p+2`$), the hyper-surface or hyper-brane which includes the case of a 3-brane in 5 dimensions, is much simpler, since it has the convenient feature that its ‘active’ effect on the background does not give rise to divergences and can be allowed for in straightforward way in terms of simple discontinuities in the relevant field gradients. Of most interest in the context of General Relativity is the discontinuity in the space-time metric $`g_{\mu \nu }`$ which has been discussed in many works. In this paper we follow the approach presented in ref.  based on a treatment pionneered by Darmois , and finally cast into a conveniently coordinate independent form in terms of the tensorially well defined second fundamental form (or extrinsic curvature tensor) by Israel  in what is commonly quoted as the definitive reference on this topic.

The present article has been motivated by the observation made in ref.  that these Darmois-Israel junction conditions are incomplete since they only prescribe the active source effect of the hyper-brane on the background, and do not include the equation governing the passive motion of the world-volume within the background. This passive equation of motion is often derived in particular coordinate systems for diverse applications (see, for example, ref. ) and in the specific case of $`Z_2`$ symmetry, often used in brane-world models, it is trivial . The main result of this paper is to cast this equation, which is analogous to Newton’s 2nd law, in a coordinate independent tensorial form in an essentially equivalent way to that done by Israel for the case of the active effect.

Such form for the passive effect has so far been available only for the weakly coupled limit, for which  it takes the simple form

$$\overline{T}{}_{}{}^{\mu \nu }K_{\mu \nu }^{}=f,$$
(1)
where $`\overline{T}^{\mu \nu }`$ is the energy-momentum density tensor for the matter and vacuum energy localized on the brane, $`K_{\mu \nu }`$ is the second fundamental form or extrinsic curvature tensor, and $`\overline{f}`$ is the magnitude of any orthogonal force density due to external fields in the direction normal to the brane. Interestingly the form of (1) is that of Newton’s 2nd law, $`\overline{T}^{\mu \nu }`$ playing the role of mass and $`K_{\mu \nu }`$ that of acceleration, and the more general form which we will derive here will just replace extrinsic curvature and the extrenal force with their sectional averages over a small neighbourhood around the brane.

In fact (1) is a specialization of the more general equation $`\overline{T}{}_{}{}^{\mu \nu }K_{\mu \nu }^{}{}_{}{}^{\rho }=^\rho {}_{\nu }{}^{}f_{}^{\nu }`$, which applies to weakly coupled branes of any co-dimension , where $`K_{\mu \nu }^\rho `$ is the generalization of the second fundamental form and the $`f^\nu `$ is the external force density. Within this formalism $`\eta _{\mu \nu }`$ is the fundamental form (or metric) of the brane and its orthogonal complement is defined by $`_{\mu \nu }=g_{\mu \nu }\eta _{\mu \nu }`$. If one specializes to the co-dimension one case then the orthogonal projection can be expressed in terms of a single normal vector $`n_\mu `$ in the direction of the extra dimension; the orthogonal complement taking the form $`_{\mu \nu }=n_\mu n_\nu `$. The orthogonal unit vector can also be used to specify the orthogonal force density magnitude, and the second fundamental tensor according to the prescriptions $`\overline{f}=n_\nu \overline{f^\nu }`$ and $`K_{\mu \nu }=K_{\mu \nu }{}_{}{}^{\rho }n_{\rho }^{}`$. Equivalently, without reference to the 3-index second fundamental tensor, the extrinsic curvature tensor can be expressed directly

$$K_{\mu \nu }=\eta ^\rho {}_{\nu }{}^{}\overline{}_{\mu }^{}n_\rho ,$$
(2)
in terms of the tangentially projected differentiation operator, $`\overline{}_\nu =\eta ^\nu {}_{\mu }{}^{}_{\nu }^{}`$. For the rest of this article we will work with the 2-index version of the second fundamental form as is sensible in the case of co-dimension one objects under consideration here. Nonetheless, we would like to point out that the notation and some of the methods we use are applicable more generally.

## II Active gravitational source equation — the Darmois-Israel formula

We start by introducing notation that is applicable to a generic field quantity $`Q`$ say, before applying it to the specific case of the extrinsic curvature. The field is assumed to vary smoothly within a neighbourhood $`\zeta _{_{}}<\zeta <\zeta __+`$ of a timelike hypersurface that is identified as the world-volume of the brane under consideration. One can assume that the brane is situated at the locus $`\zeta =0`$ with respect to coordinates chosen so that $`\zeta `$ measures the normal distance from the world-volume, and hence the unit normal will be given by $`n_\nu =_\nu \zeta /(_\mu \zeta ^\mu \zeta )^{1/2}`$. We are concerned with limit configurations for which the normal derivative $`Q^{}=Q/\zeta =n^\nu _\nu Q`$ becomes extremely large compared with the corresponding tangential gradient components in the region under consideration. Therefore, the effective discontinuity as perceived on a scale large compared with the thickness $`\zeta __+\zeta _{_{}}`$ will be given by $`[Q]=Q^+Q^{}`$. This discontinuity will also be expressible as $`[Q]=\overline{Q^{}}`$ where $`\overline{_\nu Q}n_\nu [Q]`$, using an overline for the sectional integral $`\overline{Q^{}}=_\zeta _{}^{\zeta _+}Q^{}𝑑\zeta `$. Conversely, this is equal to the coefficient of the Dirac distribution to which this derivative will tend in the ultra-thin limit, that is, $`Q^{}`$ $`=\overline{Q^{}}\delta [\zeta ]`$. If we now define $`Q=(Q^++Q^{})/2`$, we see that the sectional integral of the product $`QQ^{}`$ can be expressed as $`\overline{QQ^{}}=Q[Q]`$.

In such a thin brane limit, when the transverse derivatives are considered as negligibly small compared with normal ones, then according to the standard analysis  the dominant contribution to the normal derivative of the second fundamental form of the constant $`\zeta `$ hyper-surfaces will be given by

$$K_{\mu \nu }^{}\eta ^\kappa {}_{\mu }{}^{}\eta _{}^{\lambda }{}_{\nu }{}^{}_{}^{\rho }{}_{\sigma }{}^{}_{\rho \kappa }^{}{}_{}{}^{\sigma }{}_{\lambda }{}^{},$$
(3)
where $`_{\rho \mu }{}_{}{}^{\sigma }_\nu `$ are the components of the Riemann tensor of the n-dimensional background geometry and the symbol $``$ denotes equality to the dominant contribution. Contraction of this formula gives the relation $`K^{}^\rho {}_{\sigma }{}^{}_{}^{\sigma }_\rho `$, where $`K=K^\nu _\nu `$ is the extrinsic curvature scalar and $`_{\mu \nu }=_{\sigma \mu }{}_{}{}^{\sigma }_\nu `$ is the background Ricci tensor. Taking account of the fact that, even in the thin limit for which the background curvature becomes very large, the intrinsic curvature of the world-volume will remain relatively negligible, it can be seen that (3) also implies

$$K_{\mu \nu }^{}\eta ^\kappa {}_{\mu }{}^{}\eta _{}^{\lambda }{}_{\nu }{}^{}_{\kappa \lambda }^{}.$$
(4)
Thus, one can deduce that the dominant components of the background Ricci tensor will be given by the asymptotic formula

$$_{\mu \nu }K_{\mu \nu }^{}+K^{}_{\mu \nu },$$
(5)
whose contraction gives the expression $`2K^{}`$ for the background Ricci scalar $`=^\nu _\nu `$.

For physical applications one is usually concerned with the Einstein tensor $`𝒢_{\mu \nu }=_{\mu \nu }\frac{1}{2}g_{\mu \nu }`$ whose dominant components, which are exclusively tangential, are given by

$$𝒢_{\mu \nu }K_{\mu \nu }^{}K^{}\eta _{\mu \nu }.$$
(6)
The active effect of the brane — the Darmois-Israel formula — can then be deduced by performing the sectional integral of this quantity. Using the notation conventions introduced above, one can deduce that

$$\overline{𝒢}_{\mu \nu }=[K_{\mu \nu }][K]\eta _{\mu \nu }.$$
(7)
In $`n`$-dimensions the Einstein equations take the form

$$𝒢_{\mu \nu }=(n2)\mathrm{\Omega }^{[n2]}\mathrm{G}_\mathrm{N}^{[n]}T^{\mu \nu }\mathrm{\Lambda }^{[n]}g_{\mu \nu },$$
(8)
where $`\mathrm{\Omega }^{[n2]}`$ denotes the surface area of the unit $`(n2)`$-sphere, $`G_\mathrm{N}^{[n]}=M^{2n}`$ is the $`n`$-dimensional analogy of the Newton’s constant defined in terms of mass scale M, and $`\mathrm{\Lambda }^{[n]}`$ is the background cosmological constant. In 4-dimensional spacetime, $`\mathrm{\Omega }^{[2]}=4\pi `$ and $`M=M_{\mathrm{pl}}`$ is the standard Planck mass, while in the 5-dimensional case of most interest here, $`\mathrm{\Omega }^{[3]}=2\pi ^2`$ and $`M`$ is the corresponding mass scale, which might be related to $`M_{\mathrm{pl}}`$ in order to solve the hierarchy problem. By performing the relevant sectional integration, and substituting in (7) one can deduce the standard form of the Darmois-Israel conditions

$$[K_{\mu \nu }]=\frac{\mathrm{\Omega }^{[n2]}}{M^{n2}}\left((n2)\overline{T}{}_{\mu \nu }{}^{}\overline{T}^\rho {}_{\rho }{}^{}\eta _{\mu \nu }^{}\right),$$
(9)
for the gravitational effect of the sectionally integrated energy-momentum density tensor $`\overline{T}{}_{}{}^{\mu \nu }=_\zeta _{}^{\zeta _+}T^{\mu \nu }d\zeta `$ .

## III Passive world-volume evolution equation

Having re-derived this well-known formula governing the ‘active’ gravitational source, we now turn our attention to the previously overlooked question of the corresponding equation governing the dynamical evolution of the brane world-volume, which can be obtained from the local dynamical equation

$$_\mu T^{\mu \nu }=f^\nu ,$$
(10)
where $`f^\nu `$ is the force density resulting from coupling to external fields not taken into account in the evaluation of the locally concentrated energy-momentum density $`T^{\mu \nu }`$. The sectional integral of $`T^{\mu \nu }`$ gives the surface energy-momentum density $`\overline{T}^{\mu \nu }`$ which, in the ultra-thin limit, is given by $`T^{\mu \nu }=\overline{T}{}_{}{}^{\mu \nu }\delta [\zeta ]`$. It follows immediately from (10) that the orthogonal force density $`f=n_\nu f^\nu `$ will be given by

$$f=_\mu \left(T^{\mu \nu }n_\nu \right)T^{\mu \nu }_\mu n_\nu ,$$
(11)
via a standard manipulation.

Since the Einstein tensor (6) has a tangential form and is proportional to $`T^{\mu \nu }`$, it can be seen from (2) that the last term can be expressed as $`T^{\mu \nu }_\mu n_\nu T^{\mu \nu }K_{\mu \nu }`$, while the first term will give a vanishing surface contribution by Green’s theorem when we integrate to obtain the total sectional force density $`\overline{f}=_{_{}}^_+f𝑑\zeta `$. This is given by

$$\overline{f}=\overline{T^{\mu \nu }K_{\mu \nu }}.$$
(12)
It can be seen from (7) that the dominant contribution to $`T^{\mu \nu }`$ is proportional to $`\left(g^{\mu \rho }g^{\nu \sigma }\eta ^{\mu \nu }g^{\rho \sigma }\right)K_{\rho \sigma }^{}`$, so substituting $`K_{\mu \nu }`$ for $`Q`$ in the general formula $`\overline{Q^{}Q}=[Q]Q`$ we finally obtain the required discontinuous generalisation of (1) in the form

$$\overline{T}{}_{}{}^{\mu \nu }K_{\mu \nu }=\overline{f},$$
(13)
where we recall that $`K_{\mu \nu }=\frac{1}{2}(K_{\mu \nu }^_++K_{\mu \nu }^{_{}})`$ denotes the average of the values of the second fundamental form on the two sides.

To actually apply the evolution equation (13) it is necessary to know enough about the intrinsic mechanics of the brane to be able to evaluate its surface energy-momentum density $`\overline{T}^{\mu \nu }`$ and the force term $`\overline{f}`$, which will generally be attributable to the action of background fields whose energy-momentum density $`T_{_{\mathrm{ba}}}^{\mu \nu }`$ will provide a bounded contribution to the total stress energy density distribution $`T_{_{\mathrm{to}}}^{\mu \nu }`$ $`=T_{_{\mathrm{ba}}}^{\mu \nu }+\overline{T}{}_{}{}^{\mu \nu }\delta [\zeta ]`$. The requirement that this total should satisfy the divergence condition $`_\mu T_{_{\mathrm{to}}}^{\mu \nu }`$ $`=0`$ implies by (10) that the force density term should be given by $`f=n_\nu f^\nu `$ with $`f^\nu =_\mu T_{_{\mathrm{ba}}}^{\mu \nu }`$. In the ultra-thin limit this gives $`f^\nu n_\mu T_{_{\mathrm{ba}}}^{\mu \nu }`$ and hence, the corresponding sectional integral is obtained as $`\overline{f}{}_{}{}^{\nu }=n_\mu [T_{_{\mathrm{ba}}}^{\mu \nu }]`$. Using this to evaluate the scalar force density $`\overline{f}=n_\nu \overline{f}^\nu `$, we finally obtain the world-volume evolution equation in the generically valid form

$$\overline{T}{}_{}{}^{\mu \nu }K_{\mu \nu }+[T_{_{\mathrm{ba}}}^{\mu \nu }]_{\mu \nu }=0.$$
(14)
## IV Minimal gauge coupling

We have already commented that $`Z_2`$ symmetry is often assumed in brane-world models motivated by the concept of orbifolds, and that the evolution equation which we have derived is trivially satisfied in this case. It is, however, interesting to consider what happens if this assumption is relaxed. A recent generalisation  envisages the spontaneous violation of the $`Z_2`$ reflection symmetry even without the intervention of an external force. Here, we consider the obvious further generalisation in which violation of reflection symmetry is not spontaneous, but imposed as a physical necessity by the presence of an external force of the kind that will arise from a minimal gauge field coupling.

The simplest kind of external field coupling that one might imagine is an antisymmetric $`r`$-form Ramond gauge field $`A_{}^{\{r\}}{}_{\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _r}{}^{}`$. For any such field there will be a corresponding gauge independent field defined as its exterior derivative by

$$F_{}^{\{r+1\}}{}_{\nu _0\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _r}{}^{}=(r+1)_{[\nu _0}A_{}^{\{r\}}{}_{\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _r]}{}^{},$$
(15)
where the square brackets denote antisymmetrization. The background action associated with such a field, will comprize of two terms, an external contribution — usually due to the kinetic energy term associated with the field — and coupling term, $`_{_{\mathrm{ba}}}=_{_{\mathrm{ex}}}+_{_{\mathrm{co}}}`$. One can write the external part in terms of an $`n`$-dimensional integral of a Lagrangian density $`_{_{\mathrm{ex}}}=_{_{\mathrm{ex}}}g^{1/2}d^nx`$ with the standard Lagrangian density taking the quadratic form

$$_{_{\mathrm{ex}}}=\frac{m^{n22r}}{2(r+1)!\mathrm{\Omega }^{[n2]}}F^{\{r+1\}\nu _0\mathrm{}\nu _r}F_{}^{\{r+1\}}{}_{\nu _0\mathrm{}\nu _r}{}^{},$$
(16)
where $`m`$ is a fixed coupling constant having the dimensions of mass, whose presence can be seen to be redundant in the most familiar example, namely the case of Maxwellian electrodynamics characterised by r=1 with n=4, but not in more general situations. The corresponding external energy-momentum tensor $`T_{_{\mathrm{ex}}}^{}{}_{}{}^{\mu }{}_{\rho }{}^{}`$ will be given by

$$T_{_{\mathrm{ex}}}^{}{}_{}{}^{\mu }{}_{\rho }{}^{}=2g_{\nu \rho }\frac{_{_{\mathrm{ex}}}}{g_{\mu \nu }}+g_{}^{\mu }{}_{\rho }{}^{}_{_{\mathrm{ex}}}=\frac{m^{n22r}}{r!\mathrm{\Omega }^{[n2]}}\left(F^{\{r+1\}\mu \nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _r}F_{}^{\{r+1\}}{}_{\rho \nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _r}{}^{}\frac{1}{2(r+1)}g_{}^{\mu }{}_{\rho }{}^{}F^{\{r+1\}\nu _0\mathrm{}\nu _r}F_{}^{\{r+1\}}{}_{\nu _0\mathrm{}\nu _r}{}^{}\right).$$
(17)
The standard coupling of such a field to a $`p`$-brane is using an action $`_{_{\mathrm{co}}}`$ of the generalized Wess-Zumuno type

$$_{_{\mathrm{co}}}=\overline{_{_{\mathrm{co}}}}\gamma ^{1/2}d^{p+1}\sigma ,$$
(18)
which will require that $`r=p+1`$. The Lagrangian surface density has the form

$$\overline{_{_{\mathrm{co}}}}=\frac{1}{(p+1)!}\overline{𝐣}^{\{p+1\}\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{p+1}}A_{}^{\{p+1\}}{}_{\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{p+1}}{}^{},$$
(19)
with

$$\overline{𝐣}^{\{p+1\}\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{p+1}}=e^{\{p+1\}}^{\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{p+1}},$$
(20)
where $`^{\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{p+1}}`$, normalized such that $`^{\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{p+1}}_{\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{p+1}}=(p+1)!`$, is the usual antisymmetric surface element, $`\gamma `$ is the modulus of the determinant of the induced metric given with respect to internal coordinates $`\sigma ^a`$ ($`a`$=1, … , p+1) by $`\gamma _{ab}=`$ $`\eta _{\mu \nu }_ax^\mu _bx^\nu =g_{\mu \nu }_ax^\mu _bx^\nu `$, and $`e^{\{p+1\}}`$ is a dimensionless charge coupling constant.

One can formally convert the world-volume integral (18) to the background spacetime integral

$$_{_{\mathrm{co}}}=𝐣^{\{p+1\}\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{p+1}}A_{}^{\{p+1\}}{}_{\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{p+1}}{}^{}g^{1/2}d^nx,$$
(21)
by the introduction of a Dirac distribution with respect to the world-volume locus $`x^\mu =\overline{x}{}_{}{}^{\mu }\{\sigma \}`$, and hence the source flux vector is given by

$$𝐣^{\{p+1\}\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{p+1}}=g^{1/2}\delta ^{(n)}[x\overline{x}\{\sigma \}]\overline{𝐣}^{\{p+1\}\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{p+1}}\gamma ^{1/2}d^{p+1}\sigma .$$
(22)
The field equation can then be derived directly from this,

$$m^{n2p4}^\mu F_{}^{\{p+2\}}{}_{\mu \nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{p+1}}{}^{}=\mathrm{\Omega }^{[\mathrm{n}2]}𝐣_{}^{\{p+1\}}{}_{\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{p+1}}{}^{},$$
(23)
and (as shown elsewhere ) the corresponding generalised Faraday-Lorentz force density law is given by

$$f_\mu =\frac{1}{(p+1)!}F_{}^{\{p+2\}}{}_{\mu \nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{p+1}}{}^{}𝐣^{\{p+1\}\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{p+1}}.$$
(24)
These expressions are valid for a general $`p`$-brane in an $`n`$-dimensional spacetime. For a co-dimension larger than one such a source gives rise to a divergence, for example the n=4, d=2 axion divergence in strings (see, for example, ref ), although this may be cancelled by the inclusion of an appropriately weighted dilaton field .

This kind of divergence problem does not arise in the co-dimension one case with which we are concerned here. In this case resulting field $`F_{}^{\{n\}}{}_{\nu _0\mathrm{}\nu _{n1}}{}^{}`$ will remain bounded, with just a discontinuity given according to (23), by the limit of the asymptotic formula $`m^nF_{}^{\{n\}}{}_{\mu \nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{n1}}{}^{}n\mathrm{\Omega }^{[\mathrm{n}2]}n_{[\mu }𝐣_{}^{\{n1\}}{}_{\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{n1}]}{}^{}`$. Computing the sectional integeral, gives the following formula for the discontinuity

$$m^n[F_{}^{\{n\}}{}_{\mu \nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{n1}}{}^{}]=n\mathrm{\Omega }^{[\mathrm{n}2]}n_{[\mu }\overline{𝐣}_{}^{\{n1\}}{}_{\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{n1}]}{}^{},$$
(25)
with $`_{}^{\mu }{}_{\nu _1}{}^{}\overline{𝐣}^{\{n1\}\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{n1}}=0`$. In the ultra-thin limit (22) can replaced by the simpler formula

$$𝐣^{\{n1\}\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{n1}}=\overline{𝐣}^{\{n1\}\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{n1}}\delta [\zeta ],$$
(26)
and it can be seen from (24) that the surface force density will be given in terms of the mean field $`F_{}^{\{n\}}{}_{\nu _0\mathrm{}\nu _{n1}}{}^{}`$ by

$$\overline{f}_\mu =\frac{1}{(n1)!}F_{}^{\{n\}}{}_{\mu \nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{n1}}{}^{}\overline{𝐣}^{\{n1\}\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{n1}}.$$
(27)
Since there exists just one totally antisymmetric $`n`$-vector in an $`n`$-dimensional spacetime, one can write the corresponding physical field $`F_{}^{\{n\}}{}_{\nu _0\mathrm{}\nu _{n1}}{}^{}`$ in terms of a pseudo-scalar magnitude $`F^{\{n\}}`$ given by

$$F_{}^{\{n\}}{}_{\nu _0\mathrm{}\nu _{n1}}{}^{}=F^{\{n\}}ϵ_{\nu _0\mathrm{}\nu _{n1}},$$
(28)
where $`ϵ_{\nu _0\mathrm{}\nu _{n1}}`$ is the background spacetime antisymmetric $`n`$-form normalized in an equivalent way to $`^{\nu _1..\nu _{p+1}}`$. Therefore, the external energy-momentum tensor (17) will reduce to the form

$$T_{_{\mathrm{ex}}}^{}{}_{}{}^{\mu }{}_{\rho }{}^{}=\frac{1}{2m^n\mathrm{\Omega }^{[n2]}}\left(F^{_{\{\mathrm{n}\}}}\right)^2g_{}^{\mu }{}_{\rho }{}^{},$$
(29)
since $`ϵ^{\mu \nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{n1}}_{\rho \nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{n1}}=(n1)!g_{}^{\mu }{}_{\rho }{}^{}`$ and the field equation (23) will reduce to the form

$$_\mu F^{_{\{n\}}}=\frac{m^n\mathrm{\Omega }^{[n2]}}{(n1)!}ϵ_{\mu \nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{\mathrm{n}1}}𝐣^{\{n1\}\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{n1}},$$
(30)
which implies that in a source free vacuum the value of the pseudo scalar $`F^{\{n\}}`$ will be constant,so that the effect of (29) will be perceived just as a positive increment to the cosmological constant. This increment will, however, be subject to a discontinuous change across the brane world-volume, where it can be seen from the minimal coupling condition (20) that we shall have

$$[F^{\{n\}}]=e^{\{n1\}}m^n\mathrm{\Omega }^{[\mathrm{n}2]},$$
(31)
subject to the understanding that the orientation of the brane is such that the unit normal is given by $`n_\mu =ϵ_{\mu \nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{n1}}^{\nu _1\mathrm{}\nu _{n1}}/(n1)!`$.

The product $`g^{1/2}_{_{\mathrm{co}}}`$ is independent of the metric and so gives no contribution to the energy-momentum density, $`T_{_{\mathrm{co}}}^{\mu \nu }=0`$ and hence that the background contribution in the world-volume evolution equation (14) will be given simply by $`T_{_{\mathrm{ba}}}^{}{}_{}{}^{\mu \nu }`$ $`=T_{_{\mathrm{ex}}}^{}{}_{}{}^{\mu \nu }`$. Therefore, the required force density $`\overline{f}`$ $`=n_\mu n_\nu [T_{_{\mathrm{ba}}}^{\mu \nu }]`$ can thus be seen from (29) to be given by the constant value

$$\overline{f}=\frac{1}{2m^n\mathrm{\Omega }^{[\mathrm{n}2]}}\left[\left(F^{_{\{n\}}}\right)^2\right]=e^{\{n1\}}F^{_{\{\mathrm{n}\}}}.$$
(32)
## V Summary

We have derived in a coordinate independent way the passive effect of the world-cvolume evolution on a co-dimension one brane. This equation is interesting in the context of brane-world models when $`Z_2`$ symmetry is not imposed by hand and we have illustrated how such a possibility might manifest itself when the brane is minimally coupled to an $`(n1)`$-form field. We have showed that such a field is constant except for a discontinuity at the brane and, hence, the effective background cosmological constant will be different on either side of the brane giving us a realistic situation in which the models discussed in ref. are valid. The formulae derived in this paper can be used to compute, for example, the evolution of the scale-factor in a FRW type model for the universe confined to a 3-brane in 5 spacetime dimensions .