Orbital magnetization and its effect in antiferromagnets on the distorted fcc lattice

TL;DR

This paper investigates the intrinsic orbital magnetization in antiferromagnets on a distorted fcc lattice, revealing how lattice distortion and spin frustration influence magnetic and transport properties, including Berry phase effects.

Contribution

It introduces a relation between orbital magnetization and Hall conductivity in antiferromagnets, highlighting the effects of lattice distortion and spin frustration on magnetic properties.

Findings

Intrinsic OM vanishes in the Mott gap.

Distinct OM behavior in metallic vs insulating regions.

Berry phase effects impact thermoelectric transport.

Abstract

We study the intrinsic orbital magnetization (OM) in antiferromagnets on the distorted face-centered-cubic lattice. The combined lattice distortion and spin frustration induce nontrivial $k$-space Chern invariant, which turns to result in profound effects on the OM properties. We derive a specific relation between the OM and the Hall conductivity, according to which it is found that the intrinsic OM vanishes when the electron chemical potential lies in the Mott gap. The distinct behavior of the intrinsic OM in the metallic and insulating regions is shown. The Berry phase effects on the thermoelectric transport is also discussed.