Interacting multicomponent $SU(N)$ magnets

Abstract

We study magnets composed of molecules with atoms interacting via $SU(N)$-invariant two-body interactions. Atoms carry states transforming in generically different irreducible representations of $SU(N)$, and the interaction strength between atoms depends on the specific atoms involved. We derive the thermodynamics of these magnets in the mean-field approach, and find that they can exhibit mixed ferro-antiferromagnetic behavior. We present a full analysis of the simplest nontrivial case of molecules consisting of two atoms in the spin-$j$ representation of $SU(2)$, which generalizes conventional magnetic systems, and derive its phase structure and transitions.

38 pages, 6 figures, 1 table