Two body interactions induces the axion-phason field in Weyl semimetals

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates that two-body interactions in Weyl semimetals can induce a dynamic axion field, leading to a sliding charge density wave consistent with recent experimental observations.

Contribution

It introduces a theory linking two-body interactions to a space-time dependent topological axion term in Weyl semimetals, explaining experimental CDW phenomena.

Findings

Induction of a space-time dependent axion field by two-body interactions.

Prediction of a sliding charge density wave in Weyl semimetals.

Agreement with recent experimental observations of CDW in Weyl materials.

Abstract

Following our results that the two-body interaction can induce a space and time dependent topological axion term $ \frac{e^2}{2\pi \hbar}\theta(z,t)(\vec{E}\cdot\vec{B})$, we show that by applying this theory to a Weyl semimetal with two nodes in a magnetic field a one-dimensional sliding charge density wave (CDW) in agreement with the recent experimental finding of J. Gooth et al. [Nature, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-019-1630-4 (2019)]. We show that the theory is equivalent to a time and space dependent of the topological angle which represents the phason.