Screening and anti-screening in QED and in Weyl semimetals

TL;DR

This paper explores how charge distributions near impurities in Weyl semimetals exhibit phenomena like screening and anti-screening, drawing parallels with quantum electrodynamics (QED) using a relativistic Thomas-Fermi approach.

Contribution

It introduces a relativistic Thomas-Fermi framework to analyze charge screening in Weyl semimetals, highlighting analogies with QED phenomena.

Findings

Identification of screening and anti-screening regimes

Discovery of zero charge solutions

Analysis of asymptotic freedom in Weyl semimetals

Abstract

Distributions of charge near charged impurities in Weyl semimetals are considered with the help of relativistic Thomas-Fermi method in full analogy with the solutions previously found in QED. Screening and anti-screening, zero charge and asymptotic freedom solutions appearing in different physical situations are discussed.