Hofstadter butterfly and integer quantum Hall effect in three dimensions

We give a perspective on the Hofstadter butterfly (fractal energy spectrum in magnetic fields), which we have shown to arise specifically in three-dimensional(3D) systems in our previous work. (i) We first obtain the `phase diagram' on a parameter space of the transfer energies and the magnetic field for the appearance of Hofstadter's butterfly spectrum in anisotropic crystals in 3D. (ii) We show that the orientation of the external magnetic field can be arbitrary to have the...

We propose that Hofstadter's butterfly accompanied by quantum Hall effect that is similar to those predicted to occur in 3D tight-binding systems by Koshino {\it et al.} [Phys. Rev. Lett. {\bf 86}, 1062 (2001)] can be realized in an entirely different system -- 3D metals applied with weak external periodic modulations (e.g., acoustic waves). Namely, an effect of two periodic potentials interferes with Landau's quantization due to an applied magnetic field $\Vec{B}$, resulting...

We show here a series of energy gaps as in Hofstadter's butterfly, which have been shown to exist by Koshino et al [Phys. Rev. Lett. 86, 1062 (2001)] for anisotropic three-dimensional (3D) periodic systems in magnetic fields $\Vec{B}$, also arise in the isotropic case unless $\Vec{B}$ points in high-symmetry directions. Accompanying integer quantum Hall conductivities $(\sigma_{xy}, \sigma_{yz}, \sigma_{zx})$ can, surprisingly, take values $\propto (1,0,0), (0,1,0), (0,0,1)$ ...

Landau's quantization for incompletely nested Fermi surfaces is known to give rise to magnetic-field-induced spin-density waves(FISDW) in two-dimensional organic metals. Here we show that three-dimensional(3D) systems can have 3D-specific series of FISDW phases as energetically stable states, for which we clarify how and why they appear as the magnetic field is tilted. Each phase is characterized by quantized Hall effect for each of $\sigma_{xy}$ and $\sigma_{zx}$ that reside...

Topological description of hierarchical sets of spectral gaps of Hofstadter butterfly is found to be encoded in a quasicrystal where magnetic flux plays the role of a phase factor that shifts the origin of the quasiperiodic order. Revealing an intrinsic frustration at smallest energy scale, described by $\zeta=2-\sqrt{3}$, this irrational number characterizes the universal butterfly and is related to two quantum numbers that includes the Chern number of quantum Hall states. W...

The Hofstadter model illustrates the notion of topological quantum numbers and how they account for the quantization of the Hall conductance. It gives rise to colorful fractal diagrams of butterflies where the colors represent the topological quantum numbers.

We revisit the problem of self-similar properties of the Hofstadter butterfly spectrum, focusing on spectral as well as topological characteristics. In our studies involving any value of magnetic flux and arbitrary flux interval, we single out the most dominant hierarchy in the spectrum, which is found to be associated with an irrational number $\zeta=2+\sqrt{3}$ where nested set of butterflies describe a kaleidoscope. Characterizing an intrinsic frustration at smallest energ...

Starting from the Hofstadter butterfly, we define lattice versions of Landau levels as well as a continuum limit which ensures that they scale to continuum Landau levels. By including a next-neighbor repulsive interaction and projecting onto the lowest lattice Landau level, we show that incompressible ground states exist at filling fractions, $\nu = 1/3, 2/5 $ and $3/7$. Already for values of $l_0/a \sim 2$ where $l_0$ ($a$) is the magnetic length (lattice constant), the latt...

We propose a new physical interpretation of the Diophantine equation of $\sigma_{xy}$ for the Hofstadter problem. First, we divide the energy spectrum, or Hofstadter's butterfly, into smaller self-similar areas called "subcells", which were first introduced by Hofstadter to describe the recursive structure. We find that in the energy gaps between subcells, there are two ways to account for the quantization rule of $\sigma_{xy}$, that are consistent with the Diophantine equati...

In the presence of a magnetic field and an external periodic potential, the Landau level spectrum of a two-dimensional electron gas exhibits a fractal pattern in the energy spectrum which is described as the Hofstadter's butterfly. In this work, we develop a Hartree-Fock theory to deal with the electron-electron interaction in the Hofstadter's butterfly state in a finite-size graphene with periodic boundary conditions, in which we include both spin and valley degrees of freed...