Spin-orbital gapped phase with least symmetry breaking in the one-dimensional symmetrically coupled spin-orbital model

Abstract

To describe the spin-orbital energy gap formation in the one-dimensional symmetrically coupled spin-orbital model, we propose a simple mean field theory based on an SU(4) constraint fermion representation of spins and orbitals. A spin-orbital gapped phase is formed due to a marginally relevant spin-orbital valence bond pairing interaction. The energy gap of the spin and orbital excitations grows extremely slowly from the SU(4) symmetric point up to a maximum value and then decreases rapidly. By calculating the spin, orbital, and spin-orbital tensor static susceptibilities at zero temperature, we find a crossover from coherent to incoherent magnetic excitations as the spin-orbital coupling decreasing from large to small values.