Phase structure of 2-dimensional topological insulators by lattice strong coupling expansion

Abstract

The phase structure of 2-dimensional topological insulators under a sufficiently strong electron-electron interaction is investigated. The effective theory is constructed by extending the idea of the Kane-Mele model on the graphenelike honeycomb lattice, in terms of U(1) lattice gauge theory (quantum electrodynamics, QED). We analyze the phase structure by the techniques of strong coupling expansion of lattice gauge theory. As a result, we find that the topological phase structure of the system is modified by the electron-electron interaction. There evolves a new phase with the antiferromagnetism not parallel to the direction pointed by the spin-orbit coupling, in between the conventional and the topological insulator phases. We also discuss the physical implication of the new phase structure found here, in analogy to the parity-broken phase in lattice quantum chromodynamics (QCD), known as "Aoki phase".