Communications Physics (Oct 2023)

Larmor precession in strongly correlated itinerant electron systems

  • Erik G. C. P. van Loon,
  • Hugo U. R. Strand

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s42005-023-01411-w
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 6, no. 1
pp. 1 – 9

Abstract

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Abstract Many-electron systems undergo a collective Larmor precession in the presence of a magnetic field. In a paramagnetic metal, the resulting spin wave provides insight into the correlation effects generated by the electron-electron interaction. Here, we use dynamical mean-field theory to investigate the collective Larmor precession in the strongly correlated regime, where dynamical correlation effects such as quasiparticle lifetimes and non-quasiparticle states are essential. We study the spin excitation spectrum, which includes a dispersive Larmor mode as well as electron-hole excitations that lead to Stoner damping. We also extract the momentum-resolved damping of slow spin waves. The accurate theoretical description of these phenomena relies on the Ward identity, which guarantees a precise cancellation of self-energy and vertex corrections at long wavelengths. Our findings pave the way towards a better understanding of spin wave damping in correlated materials.