Quantum Stoner-Wohlfarth model

Abstract

The quantum mechanical counterpart of the famous Stoner-Wohlfarth model -- an easy-axis magnet in a tilted magnetic field -- is studied theoretically and through simulations, as a function of the spin-size $S$ in a sweeping longitudinal field. Beyond the classical Stoner-Wohlfarth transition, the sweeping field-induced adiabatic change of states slows down as $S$ increases, leading to a dynamical quantum phase transition. This result is described as a critical phenomenon associated with Landau-Zener tunneling gaps at metastable quasi-avoided crossings. Furthermore, a beating of the magnetization is discovered after the Stoner-Wohlfarth transition. The period of the beating, obtained analytically, arises from a new type of quantum phase factor.