Magnetic subband structure of an electron on a triangular lattice

Abstract

The effects of anisotropic nearest-neighbor (NN) and isotropic next-nearest-neighbor (NNN) hopping integrals on the magnetic subband structure of an electron on a triangular lattice are studied within the tight-binding approximation. A generalized Harper equation that includes both the NN and the NNN hopping terms is first derived. Then, the effects of anisotropic NN hopping integrals are examined and the results are compared in detail with those of an existing literature [Phys. Rev. B {\bf 56}, 3787 (1997)]. It is found that the hopping anisotropy generically leads to the occurrence of band broadening and gap closing. The effects of isotropic NNN hopping integrals are next examined, and it is found that introducing the NNN hopping integral changes considerably the magnetic subband structure; band broadening, gap closing, gap reopening, and band crossing occur depending on the strength of the isotropic NNN hopping integral. Symmetries of the magnetic subband structures with and without both the hopping anisotropy and the isotropic NNN hopping integrals are also discussed.