Boundary Criticality in (2+1)-dimensional U(1) Dirac Quantum Spin Liquid

Abstract

An emergent gauge field can control boundary critical behavior without changing the bulk quantum spin liquid. We investigate the boundary criticality in $(2+1)$-dimensional $U(1)$ Dirac spin liquid, whose low-energy physics is described by massless quantum electrodynamics. Using a perturbative renormalization-group analysis in a half-space, we show that Neumann and Dirichlet boundary conditions for the emergent gauge field lead to distinct boundary universality classes. We determine the boundary scaling dimensions of the fundamental fields and gauge-invariant operators that provide observable signatures. We further propose a fermion-gauge lattice model with tunable boundary interactions as a microscopic setting for realizing and probing these boundary universality classes.

arXiv comment4.4 pages + Supplemental Material, 3 figures