Renormalization group for phases with broken discrete symmetry near quantum critical points

Abstract

We extend the Hertz-Millis theory of quantum phase transitions in itinerant electron systems to phases with broken discrete symmetry. Using a set of coupled flow equations derived within the functional renormalization group framework, we compute the second order phase transition line T_c(delta), with delta a non-thermal control parameter, near a quantum critical point. We analyze the interplay and relative importance of quantum and classical fluctuations at different energy scales, and we compare the Ginzburg temperature T_G to the transition temperature T_c, the latter being associated with a non-Gaussian fixed-point.