Thesis PQT

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
VNU UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE

FACULTY OF PHYSICS
TRUNG QUOC PHUNG
SPIN WAVE SPECTRUM OF THIN FILM WITH

DZYALOSHINSKII-MORIYA INTERACTION
Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor

of Science in Condensed Matter Physics
(International Standard Program)
Supervisor: Prof. Cong Thanh Bach
Hanoi 2016
Acknowledgements
I would like to express my deepest appreciation all those who provide
possibilities for me to complete my thesis. A special gratitude I devote to Professor
Cong Thanh Bach for his kind and helpful guidance and encouragement so that I
can complete my thesis.
Furthermore I would like to acknowledge with much appreciation the help of the
staff of Computational Method in Material Sciences during my research period,
especially Ms Niem Tu Nguyen for her valuable suggestions. Many thanks I give to
my friends, even though having their own thesis works but still providing me a
helping hand when I needed the most. Last but not least, I would like to express my
great appreciation and love to my mother and family. Without them, I can hardly
achieve what I have done.
List of abbreviations
1. DM Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya
List of Figures
Chapter 1
Figure 1.1: Contour integral of Greens function ..................................................... 22
Figure 1.2: Paramagnetic phase ................................................................................ 24
Figure 1.3: Polarized phase ....................................................................................... 24
Figure 1.4: A skyrmion configuration ....................................................................... 24
Figure 1.5: Atomic structure of MnSi ....................................................................... 25
Figure 1.6: DM interaction between 2 atomic spins ................................................. 26
Chapter 2
Figure 2.1: Structure of a thin film spin system ........................................................ 28
Chapter 3
Figure 3.1: Dependence of magnetization on DM interaction .................................. 42
Figure 3.2: Dependence of magnetization on single ion anisotropy ......................... 43
Figure 3.3: Dependence of magnetization on external field ..................................... 43
Figure 3.4: Dependence of magnetization on temperature ....................................... 44
Figure 3.5: Magnon spectrum ................................................................................... 45
Figure 3.6: Dependence of magnon spectrum on interfacial DM interaction.......... 46
Figure 3.7: Temperature dependence of magnon spectrum ...................................... 47
Appendix
Figure A.1: ................................................................................................................ 51
Table of Contents
Introduction ............................................................................................................... 1
Chapter 1: Literature Reviews ................................................................................ 2
1.1) Spin waves .................................................................................................... 2
1.1.1) Heisenberg model Hamiltonian ............................................................... 2
1.1.2) Step up and step down spin operators ...................................................... 2
1.1.3) Holstein-Primakoff transformation .......................................................... 4
1.1.4) Spin waves ............................................................................................... 6
1.2) Greens function method ............................................................................ 10
1.2.1) Spectral density ....................................................................................... 10
1.2.2) Double time Greens functions ............................................................... 14
1.2.3) Equation of motion of Greens functions ................................................ 16
1.2.4) Spectral representation ............................................................................ 18
1.2.5) Fundamental spectral theorem ................................................................ 22
1.3) Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction ............................................................. 24
Chapter 2: Research objectives and research methods ....................................... 27
2.1) Outline of the problem and research methods ............................................ 27
2.2) Contents of the research: Greens function method on thin film with
Dzyaloshinskii-moriya interaction.............................................................. 27
2.2.1) The Hamiltonian...................................................................................... 28
2.2.2) Retarded Greens functions ..................................................................... 29
2.2.3) The equations of motion of Greens functions........................................ 31
2.2.4) Approximation processes ........................................................................ 33
2.2.5) Solving equations of motion ................................................................... 34
2.2.6) Self iteration ............................................................................................ 39
Chapter 3: Results and discussions ....................................................................... 41
3.1) Application to mono-layer thin film ........................................................... 41
3.2) Results and discussions............................................................................... 42
3.2.1) Magnetization .......................................................................................... 42
3.2.2) Magnon spectrum .................................................................................... 45
Conclusions .............................................................................................................. 48
References ................................................................................................................ 49
Appendix: Self iteration process in calculation of monolayer thin film ............ 51
Bachelors Thesis: Spin wave spectrum in thin film with Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction
Introduction
Chiral magnets were first spotted in 2009 and have been attracting research
interests. Their unique behaviors are results of the confrontation of symmetric
exchanges and antisymmetric exchanges. Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction is one
of these antisymmetric exchanges. This thesis presents a theoretical study of such
spin system. In chapter 1, the concepts of Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction, spin
waves, Greens function method are briefly reviewed. After that, chapter 2 is
devoted to the application of Greens functions to the study of the spin systems
mentioned. Finally, chapter 3 presents the calculation results and interpretations to
the most simple case, namely monolayer thin film.
Trung Quoc Phung, Condensed Matter Physics, K57, QH 2012, Hanoi University of Science
1
Chapter 1: Literature reviews

1.1) Spin waves
1.1.1) Heisenberg model Hamiltonian
Heisenberg model is the most famous and intensely worked model in
magnetism. It presumes that magnetic moments are permanent and localized, which
interact with one another via direct or indirect exchange mechanisms.
Throughout this paper, we will be working constantly with this model. The
magnetic moments here are localized spins. The Hamiltonian of such a system
could be write as [1,2]
H J ij Si . S j (1.1.1)
i, j
Where those Jij are called exchange integrals [1,2], defining the strength of the
interactions. S i and S j are localized spins at site i and site j, respectively, in the
vector form Si Six , Siy , Siz . We can decompose the spin operator in the
Hamiltonian into its components as:

H J ij Six S xj Siy S jy Siz S zj
i, j
(1.1.2)
With the spin operators obeying commutators [1,2]:
Six , S jy i Siz

ij
Siy , S zj i Six

ij (1.1.3)
Siz , S xj i Siy

ij
Due to these commutators, it is impossible to solve the Hamiltonian in this form.
1.1.2) Step up and step down spin operators

If we are to applying the step up and step down operators, which are
adjoint of each other and defined as [1-3]
S S x iS y (1.1.4)
So that
2
Six S Si
1
2 i (1.1.5)
Siy Si Si
1
2
Then we can cast the Hamiltonian into
H
1
2i, j

J ij Si S j Si S j J ij Siz S jz
i, j
(1.1.6)
We will look into the actions of these new operators on eigenvectors of S z

to understand why we choose them as we did. Firstly, from the definitions of the
step up and step down operators, one can easily show that they obeys commutators
[1-3]:
Siz , S j

ij Si
(1.1.7)
Si , S j 2

ij Siz
Or if we manipulate the first commutator to see that:
Siz S j ij Si +S j Siz (1.1.8)
For i j , it means that operators at different lattice sites commute. However, the
interesting case is when i j , then
Siz Si Si +Si Siz Si Siz (1.1.9)
If we act these bunch of operators on the eigenvectors miz of Siz , that
Siz miz miz miz (1.1.10)
We will get
Siz Si miz Si Siz miz miz 1 Si miz (1.1.11)
It means that if we act Si on an eigenvector of Siz , we still get an eigenvector of

Siz , only that the z-component of spin at site i now increases or decreases by .
This fact verifies the names step up and step down operators.
A side note about properties of S and S z : the eigenvalues of S z can only

take value in the set s, s 1, s 2,..., s 2, s 1, s , where s is defined in the
3
eigenvalue equation: S2 m z s s 1 m z [1,3]. Therefore, we can only act S

or S repetitively on an eigenvector of S z for a definite number of times and still
get a non-zero vector. More about spin operator algebra can be found in any text
book on basic quantum mechanics [3].
1.1.3) Holstein-Primakoff transformation
In the last section, from equation (1.1.11), we see that the actions of S and
S to localized spin states are increasing and decreasing the z-component of spin
by 1 spin unit , respectively. That is:
Si miz i miz 1 (1.1.12)
We want to make this expression explicitly. Noticing that:
Si Si Six iSiy Six iSiy Six Siy Siz

2 2
(1.1.13)

2
Si2 Siz Siz
Therefore
miz Si Si miz miz Si2 Siz Siz miz

2
(1.1.14)
i s s 1 1
2
miz 1 miz 1 2
miz miz miz miz
If all the states miz are normalized, we obtain:
s s 1 miz miz 1
1/2
Si miz miz 1 (1.1.15)
With the help of these 2 operators, we can build up all possible states of a
spin system just by applying S and S to the ground state. This way, we are
making spin deviations from the ground state. For the sake of simplicity, let the spin
system be ferromagnetic. The ground state of the system is 0 , which is when
every spin points in the same direction, presumably z-direction (ferromagnetic
saturation)
Siz 0 s 0 , i (1.1.16)
4
Since z-component of all spins have maximum value s, action of Si turn 0 to

zero vector. However, action of Si creates a spin deviation of 1 unit at lattice site I
[1,3]:
Si 0 0, i
(1.1.17)

Siz Si 0 s 1 Si 0
This is the reason for the introduction of a new representation, namely
bosonic Holstein-Primakoff representation. It has basis ni , where ni is the
number of spin deviations at site i. Increasing ni by 1 decreases miz by 1.
Associating with this representation are creation and annihilation operators, which
increases or decreases spin deviation, with the following properties [1,3]:
ai , a j ij

ai , a j 0 (1.1.18)

ai , a j 0

Similar to those operators of harmonic oscillator, these 2 raising and lowering

operators when act on spin deviation basis give [1,3]:
ai ni ni ni 1
ai ni n i 1 ni 1 (1.1.19)
ai ai ni ni ni
Conveniently, we denote ni ai ai .
Since increasing spin deviation reduces z-component spin, we have identity:
Siz s ni (1.1.20)
Or in terms of eigenvalue:
miz s ni (1.1.21)
And the effects of Si and Si in the new basis states can be written as:
5
s s 1 miz miz 1
1/2
Si ni ni 1
2sn n
1/2
i
2
i ni ni 1 (1.1.22)
n 1
1/2
1 i 2sni ni 1
2s

And
s s 1 miz miz 1
1/2
Si ni ni 1
2sn n
1/2
i
2
i 2s n ni 1 (1.1.23)
1/2
n
1 i 2s ni 1 ni 1
2s
Comparison with actions of ai and ai in (1.1.19) suggests that Si and Si can be

cast into
1/2
n
Si 2s 1 i ai 2s ni ai

2s
(1.1.24)
1/2
ni
Si 2s ai 1 2s ai ni

2s
These 2 equations, together with Siz s ni , constitute the Holstein-Primakoff

transformation [1,2,4].
The number operator ni does not modify the spin deviation state it acts on,
only the operators ai and ai . Therefore, it is safe to say that the action of Si is
equivalent to lowering operator ai , and of Si is equivalent to raising operator ai .
This conclusion is consistent to the said definition of lowering and raising operator,
as well as notion of spin deviation.
1.1.4) Spin waves
In the equation (1.1.6), we have established the Hamiltonian in terms of Si ,

Si and Siz operators
6
H
1

2 i, j
J ij Si S j Si S j J ij Siz S jz
i, j
The usual practical setup is that Jij J ji , Jii 0 [1]. Then, by utilizing second
commutator at (1.1.7), that Si , S j 2 ij Siz , let us write:

H J ij Si S j J ij Siz S zj (1.1.25)
i, j i, j
The first term indicates the process of spin deviation jumping from site to site.
Applying Holstein-Primakoff transformation (1.1.24), we write:
H 2s 2
J ij ni ai a j n j 2 J ij s ni s n j
i, j i, j
NJ 0 2 s 2 2 J 0 2 s ni 2
J ij ni n j (1.1.26)
i i, j
2s 2
J ij ni ai a j n j
i, j
Where we used the notation J 0 J ij J ij and N is the number of lattice

i j
sites.
In order to solve this Hamiltonian, some approximations must be used. Here
we utilize the so-called low-temperature approximation (other name is spin wave
approximation) [1]. Specifically, we assume that the number of spin deviations is
small compared to the total number of spins:
i ni N (1.1.27)
Or
1/2
ni
1
2s
1 2s ni 2s, i (1.1.28)

Then the relations (1.1.24) between spin operators and spin deviation operators
reduce to
Si 2s ai
(1.1.29)
Si 2s ai
7
So that the Hamiltonian takes the simple quadratic form
H NJ 0 2 s 2 2 J 0 2 s ni 2
J ij ni n j 2s 2 J ij ni ai a j n j
i i, j i, j
NJ 0 2 s 2 2
J ij ni 2s n j 2s 2 J ij ni ai a j n j (1.1.30)
i, j i, j
NJ 0 2 s 2 2 J 0 2 s ni 2s 2
J ij ai a j
i i, j
Let us apply Fourier transform to the operators
aq eiq.Ri ai ai eiq.Ri aq
i q
(1.1.31)
aq eiq.Ri ai ai eiq.Ri aq
i q
To diagonalize the Hamiltonian:
1
H NJ 0 2 s 2 2 J 0 2 s q eiq.R aq
i
eiq '.R aq ' i

i N

q'
1
2s q eiq.R aq e j aq'
iq '.R
2
J ij i
N
i, j q'
1
e
i q q '.Ri
NJ 0 2 s 2 2 J 0 2 s aq aq '
q,q ' N i
1
iq. Ri R j eiq 'q.R j
2s 2
aq aq' N J ij e
q ,q ' i, j
NJ 0 2 s 2 2 J 0 2 s aq aq ' q q '
q,q '
1
eiq.R J R e
i q 'q .R j
2s 2
aq aq' N

q ,q ' R j
= NJ 0 2 s 2 2 J 0 2 s aq aq 2s 2
q J q aq aq
q (1.1.32)
Where at the third line we change the variable, based on the fact that the exchange
integral J ij depends only on relative position between site i and site j

Jij J Ri R j J R (1.1.33)
We also introduce the notation
8
J q eiq.R J R (1.1.34)
R
The Hamiltonian now takes diagonalized form
H NJ 0 2 s 2 q aq aq (1.1.35)
q
Which describes a system of uncoupled harmonic oscillators. Based on knowledge

regarding harmonic oscillators [1,3], we can say for sure that all eigenstates of H
can be constructed from the ground state 0 by applying operators aq repetitively:
nq aq 0
n
(1.1.36)
With the operator aq aq count the number of excitations (with wave vector q) from
the ground state. As in the case of harmonic oscillators, aq and aq are called
creation and annihilation operators of some kind of quasi-particles, namely
magnons [1,2]. Our original system of interacting spins, in the low temperature
approximation, has transformed into a system of non-interacting magnons. When
aq is applied to this system, a magnon is created in the system, with energy:
q 2s 2
J0 J q (1.1.37)
Then the system is considered more excited. The effect of adding a magnon to the
system, in the spatial picture, can be illuminated by noting the Fourier transform
(1.1.31)
aq eiq.Ri ai
i
aq eiq.Ri ai
i
We can see that a magnon is a collective spin deviation on every site of the system:
an addition of a magnon to the system means creations of spin deviations on every
iq.R
site, different to each other by a wave form phase e i . It is reasonable, since the
spin interaction terms Si S j in the Hamiltonian make spin deviations jump from
site to site. Therefore, the eigenstates cannot support localized spin deviations, but
more like superposition of those localized excitation states, or in other words, more
like a wave. Hence the name spin wave.
9
1.2) Greens function method

Greens function method [1,2] is an often used tool in many-body theory. It
mainly deals with transitional micro-processes. It has strong relation with spectral
density, a quantity which reflects the spectral lines obtained from spectroscopies.
Since Greens functions set up the base for later calculations, it is fair to devote a
section for giving brief introduction about Greens functions.
1.2.1) Spectral density

Suppose our system can be described by the Hamiltonian:
H H N (1.2.1)
Here is chemical potential, and N is particle number operator [1]. We use H

instead of H because we want to perform averages in grand canonical ensemble.
The reason is that we will look at processes which may change the number of
particles in the system. Moreover, operator H and N should commute [1],
namely:
H En N En N En N
(1.2.2)
N En N N En N
Where En N denotes the state in which there are N particles in the system and
the energy of this state is En . To save effort of writing, we will denote this state
simply as En . However, one should always bear in mind that together the energy
and the particle number define the state, not just only any one of these two [1].
According to statistical physics, given the system characterized by this grand
canonical Hamiltonian, the probability with which one find the system to be in the
state En is [1]:
1 En
pEn e (1.2.3)
Z
Where Z is the grand canonical partition function [1]

Z Tr e H e En
N n
(1.2.4)
10
Consider an operator describing a physical process, which induces transition of

the system from one state to another. The probability with which the systems state
changes from En to Em is:
2
pnm Em En (1.2.5)
The intensity of this physical process at energy E is defined by [1]

I E pEn pnm E Em En
mn
(1.2.6)
The meaning of this equation is easily seen: the intensity at energy E is just total
probabilities of all possible transitions, at which the transition energy Em En
equals energy E that we are looking at. A possible transition, for example from En
to Em , has the probability identical to the probability pEn for the system to be at
the state En first, multiplying the probability that the transition is induced pnm .
The explicit equation for the intensity is:
E Em En
1
I E
2
e En Em En (1.2.7)
Z m, n
At this point, we should mention the relation of the transition operator with
its complementary counterpart. If the transition operator induces a transition
from En to Em with transition energy E Em En , one should expect that its
adjoint operator makes the system changes from state Em to En where

transition energy is E [1]. Thus we express the intensity for the latter process as
E En Em
1
I E
2

Z n,m
e Em En Em (1.2.8)
Therefore, only the intensity I E is not enough to describe the

measurements we obtain in experiments. Those spectral lines located at various
energies we get by using spectroscopies must be the sum of both transitions and
reversed transitions between states [1]. Hence, we define new quantity called

spectral density S E
11
1
S E I E I E (1.2.9)
Where 1, 1 refers to commutation, anticommutation properties. This

expression of spectral density can be simplified by utilizing relation between
intensities I E and I E :
I E
1
e Em En Em E En Em
2

Z n,m
e n Em En E Em En
1 EE

2
(1.2.10)
Z n,m
e E I E
Therefore,
1
S E I E I E e E I E (1.2.11)
Which gives the spectral density from value of one intensity only. It is easy to
understand, since intensities of forward and reversed transitions are related to each
other. And the two intensities now can be determined if we know spectral density:
e E
I E S E
e E
(1.2.12)
1
I E S E

e
E

If we perform Fourier transform on the intensities, we will obtain very neat

expressions. For I E we have:

1 i E t t '
dE e I E
2
En Em En t t '
i
1 1
2 Z
2
e e Em En
m,n
iE t i i E t' i Ent '
1 1 Emt
2 Z
En

n m
e En e e Em Em e e En
m,n
i Ht i i Ht' i Ht'
1 1 Ht
2 Z
En
e En e e Em Em e e En
m,n
12
e En En t t ' En
1 1

2 Z n
Where we have represented operators in their time-dependent Heisenberg
picture :
i Ht i Ht
X t e
Xe (1.2.13)
The Fourier transform of I E reads

i E t t '
t t '
1 1
dE e I E (1.2.14)
2
2
Similarly, for I E

i E t t '
t ' t
1 1
dE e I E (1.2.15)
2
2
Knowing the intensities, now we can calculate the Fourier transform of spectral
density, called double time spectral density [1], as

S t t '

dE e

i E t t '
I E I E

S t t ' t , t '
1
(1.2.16)
2
Where
t , t ' t t ' t ' t

Is either a commutator ( 1 ) or anticommutator ( 1). For short, we just call

S t t ' spectral density without fear of being confused with S E . Their
properties, i.e double time or energy dependent, are justified by their expressions.
Uptil now, we have seen that the intensities and the spectral density are very
importance, for their close relation to transition probabilities of physical process of
interest. Their Fourier transformed versions are, therefore, also very important,
leading to the need of studying the correlation functions t ' t and
13
t t ' [1]. To generalize this idea, we introduce the generalized spectral

density [1]:
SAB t t ' A t , B t '

1
(1.2.17)

2
As the original one, this generalized version is very important in the study of many-
body theory.
One side note here is that if the Hamiltonian is time independent, then the
spectral density is homogeneous in time:
0 SAB t t ' SAB t , t '

dH
(1.2.18)
dt
The proof is very simple. Since H is unchanged all the times, eigenvectors and
eigenvalues of H are always the same, as well as partition function Z . Using that
fact we can, for any instance of time, put:
i Ent ' i Ent '

A t B t ' e En En A t B t ' En e e
1

Z n
i Ht' i Ht'
A t B t ' e
1

Z n e En En e En
i Ht' i Ht i Ht i Ht' i Ht' i Ht'

1
e En En e e
Ae e
Be e En
Z n
A t t ' B 0 En
1
e En En
Z n
A t t ' B 0
Having the correlation function homogeneous in time, the spectral density follows.
1.2.2) Double time Greens functions

The double time Greens functions are closely related to spectral density.
There are 3 types of them and their definitions are as followed [1]:
Retarded Greens function

ret
ret
GAB t , t ' A t ; B t ' i t t ' A t , B t '

(1.2.19)
14
Advanced Greens function

ad
ad
GAB t , t ' A t ; B t ' i t ' t A t , B t '

(1.2.20)
Casual Greens function

c
c
GAB t , t ' A t ; B t ' i T A t B t ' (1.2.21)
In the above equations, operators are in their time dependent Heisenberg picture
(confer equation (1.2.13)). Moreover, H is in its grand canonical form and
independent of time, also as discussed in the last section, in equation (1.2.1) and
(1.2.18).
The main difference between the Greens functions and the spectral density
is that the Greens functions have a part responsible for controlling time order. For
the retarded and the advanced Greens function, it is the step function
1 for t t '
t t ' (1.2.22)
0 for t t '
Note that the step function is not defined for equal times. For the casual Greens
function, the Wicks time ordering operator T does the controlling order job.
However, in this paper, the usage of only retarded and advanced Greens functions
proves to be sufficient enough. For that reason, we will not be touching the casual
Greens function, only listed it for the sake of completion.
Comparison to the spectral densitys definition (1.2.17) gives us the relations
between Greens functions and spectral density:
ret
GAB t, t ' 2 i t t ' SAB t, t '
(1.2.23)
ad
GAB t, t ' 2 i t ' t SAB t, t '
From these equations, one can immediately draw the conclusion that Greens
functions are also homogeneous in time, followed from the case of spectral density,
given the condition of time independent Hamiltonian (confer argument followed
equation (1.2.18)).
15
S t t ' S t , t '
0 ret
dH AB AB
(1.2.24)
t t ' GAB t , t '
ret
dt GAB
ad ad
1.2.3) Equation of motion of Greens functions

In order to determine the Greens functions, one can use the respective
equations of motion of Greens functions [1]:
ret
i GAB t , t ' t t ' A t , B t ' t t ' A t , B t '
t t t
(1.2.25)
With the help of the identity (Reference [1])

t t ' t t ' t t ' (1.2.26)
t t '
And the equation of motion for time-dependent operators (not explicit dependent),
in Heisenberg picture [1,3]
d
dt
At
i

i

H , A t H A t A t H
(1.2.27)
We obtain
ret
i G t , t ' t t ' A , B i t t ' A t , H , B t '

t AB
ret
t t ' A

, B

A

, H t ; B t '

We do similarly for advanced Greens function. Then we write both of them as in

ret
ret ad
i
t
GAB
ad
t , t ' t t ' A , B

A

, H t ; B t '

(1.2.28)
The equation of motion takes a more simple algebraic form when transformed to
energy representation. Using

i E t t '
t t '
1
2

dE e (1.2.29)
And
16

i E t t '
f t t ' dE f E e (1.2.30)

To feed into time representation equation of motion

1
i E t t ' i E t t '
dE GAB E e A , B
ret
i ad
dE e
t 2

(1.2.31)
ret
ad
i E t t '

dE A , H ; B

e

E

Gives
ret
ad
1
E GAB E A , H ; B
ret
ad
A, B (1.2.32)
2
E
On the right handed side of these equations above, there appears higher
ret
ad
order Greens function A , H ; B [1]. This higher order Greens function

E
satisfies its own equation of motion, which is

ret ret
ad
A , H ; B
ad
1
E A, H , B A, H , H ; B (1.2.33)

E
2
E
The right hand side of the above equation contains even a higher Greens function,
whose equation of motion then can be written. Therefore, we have an infinite chain
of equations of motion. In order to solve these equations of motion, we need to
perform approximation to cut off the chain at some stage.
A simple approximation is that we assume the second order Greens function
in (1.2.32) is expressible in term of the first order Greens function, as in
1
E E
ret ret
E GAB
ad

A, B
G ad
(1.2.34)
2
AB
Then we can easily calculate the values of Greens function.

In many-body theory, one usually has to deal with many Greens functions of
various operators, i.e
17
ret
ad
Ai ; B j (1.2.35)
E
Where i and j take values from large sets of indexes. Then, using the same
theory, we can set up a set of equations of motion, which, upon approximations,
might take the form, as in Reference [12]
ret ret
ad
ad
1 A , H ; B
E Ai ; B j A,B
E 2 i j i j
E
ret
(1.2.36)
1
2 i j
ad
A,B im Am ; B j
m E
In this case, it is different from the case of only 2 operators with no indexes. The
approximation might yell a bunch of many other Greens functions as well. The
approximation is the decoupling process of Ai , H , therefore im is not likely to

depend on index j of operator B j . At this point, it is convenient to cast this set of

equation into matrix form
E1 G (1.2.37)
1
With is the matrix whose elements are ij A,B , and 1 is the unit
2 i j
ret
ad
matrix. G denotes matrix of Greens functions, elements G mj Am ; B j . And
E
finally, is matrix of elements im im , where i is row index and m is column

index.
1.2.4) Spectral representation

This section aims to reveal the relations of Greens functions and
(generalized) spectral density with transition processes, as well as their analytical
properties.
We first look for such an expression of spectral density, by investigating
correlation functions. Similar to what we have done in section 1.2.1, one find
18
i Ht' i Ht' i Ht i Ht
B t ' A t e
1 En
En e Be Em Em e Ae En
Z n ,m
(1.2.38)
1 i En Em t t '
e En En B Em Em A En e
Z n ,m
Completely analogous treatment gives us the other correlation function

i Ht i i i
A t B t ' e En En e Ae
1 H t Em Em e H t ' Be
H t ' En
Z n,m
1 i Em En t t '
Z
e En
Em

B En En

A Em e (1.2.39)
n,m
1 En En Em i En Em t t '
e e
En B Em Em A En e
Z n,m
Where at the last line, we interchange 2 indexes m and n, in order to setting up a
summation of the 2 correlation functions later on. We Fourier transform the double
time spectral density SAB t , t ' into its energy representation, to find

i E t t '
d t t ' e t , t '
1
SAB E S AB
2

i E t t '
d t t ' e A t , B t '
1 1

2

2
2
1 1

4 Z n,m
e En e n m En B Em Em A En E En Em

E E

(1.2.40)
Similar to expression (1.2.7) and (1.2.8), the argument of delta function selects out
all the possible transitions. The energy E is then corresponds to excitation energy
En Em of those transitions. Hence, this equation is named spectral
representation of spectral density [1]
In the introduction of double time Greens functions and spectral density, we
have already seen their closed relation, i.e the equation (1.2.23). Now we want to
develop another relation connecting these two quantities in their energy
representation.
By utilizing the following representation of the step function, [1]
e
ix t t '
t t '
i
2 dx x i0

(1.2.41)
19
And the relation (1.2.23) of Greens functions and spectral density in time
representation
ret
GAB t, t ' 2 i t t ' SAB t, t '
ad
GAB t, t ' 2 i t ' t SAB t, t '
We write

i E t t '
ret
GAB E 2 d t t ' e
1 ret
GAB t t '

2 i t t ' S t, t '
i E t t '
d t t ' e
1

2
AB
e
i E t t '
ix t t '
i E 't t '
d t t ' e
1

dx dE ' S E ' e
2 x i0 AB

1 1 i E E ' x t t '

dE ' S AB E ' dx d t t ' e
1

x i 0 2

1

1
dE ' SAB E ' dx
x i0

E E ' x

And obtain the spectral representation of retarded Greens function [1]
SAB E '

ret
GAB E dE ' E E ' i0 (1.2.42)

The advanced Greens function can be treated analogously to yield the spectral
representation of advanced Greens function [1]
SAB E '

ad
GAB E dE ' E E ' i0 (1.2.43)

If we substitute spectral representation of spectral density (1.2.40) into those two

newly found equations, we get
En Em
e
GAB E
1 1
En B Em Em A En e En
ret
ad
(1.2.44)
4 2
Z n,m E En Em i0
We can see directly from this equation that Greens functions have poles at the
exact values of excitation energies corresponding to the transitions induced by the
20
operator A and B under investigation! (differ by only i0 ) Therefore, by looking

at the poles of suitable Greens functions of suitable operators, we can find the
excitation energies induced by the physical processes of interest.
The difference in whether it is i0 or i0 results in different analytical

behaviors of the two functions. From (1.2.44), if we treat variable E as complex,
then we can say that the retarded Greens function has poles in the lower half of
complex energy plane, where the advanced Greens function has poles in the upper
E by solving their equations of
ret
half one. Suppose we have already known GAB
ad
t , t '
ret
motion, and want to evaluate their double time versions GAB
ad

i E t t '
GAB t , t ' E
ret ret
ad
dE e GAB
ad
(1.2.45)

This integral can be calculated using residue theorem [1]. Basically, we will not
integrate with real values of E, but instead do integration all over a half of the
complex energy plane. Which half of the complex plane, upper or lower, depends
on the condition that
i E t t '
lim e 0
Im E
If t t ' , then GAB

ret
t , t ' might differ 0 but GAB
ad
t , t ' must be 0, by definition
(1.2.19) and (1.2.20). What about the results obtained from the integral (1.2.45) ?
The condition above tell us that we should choose the lower half of complex plane,

since exp Im E t t ' Re E t t ' tends to 0 if imaginary part of E tends
i

to infinity (Figure 1.1). Then, suggested by residue theorem, the integral (1.2.45)
equals total residues of poles on the chosen half plane, which is the lower one. The
retarded Greens function has poles on this half plane, while the advanced one does
ret
not. Therefore, we expect GAB t , t ' to be non-zero, which equals total residue
ad
contributions of poles, and GAB t, t ' 0 , for there is no pole to contribute.
Likewise, case t t ' is treated similarly. Hence, we conclude that step function and
the analytical behaviors of Greens function in energy representation are consistent.
21
Figure 1.1: Contour (blue line) integral of Greens function, where red dots are poles of
retarded Greens function.
Last but not least, there is another useful relation between spectral density
and Greens functions. From the Sokhotski-Plemelj formular (or Dirac identity) [1]
i x x0
1 1
P (1.2.46)
x x0 i0 x x0
Where P is Cauchys principal value, we obtain
SAB E
i
2
ad
GAB E GAB
ret
E (1.2.47)
In many cases where B A , the spectral density S AB E take real values, which
is convincing since
2
En B Em Em A En Em A En pnm
Which is transition probability defined in equation (1.2.5). Then, plugging in

(1.2.44) gives simple expressions
Im GAret A E Im GAad A SA A E (1.2.48)
SA A E '
Re GAret A E Re GAad A E P dE ' E E ' (1.2.49)

22
1.2.5) Fundamental spectral theorem

This theorem allows us to calculate correlation function from spectral
density. It means that we can determine the whole macroscopic dynamics of the
system, since they rely on correlation functions, or more specifically, averages.
The derivation is very simple. Start from expression of correlation function
(1.2.38)
i En Em t t '
B t ' A t e En En B Em Em A En e
1
Z n, m
We compare with spectral representation of spectral density,
SAB E
1
4 2
1

Z n,m
E E

e En e n m En B Em Em A En E En Em
To see that the following expression is right

SAB E i Et t ' 1
B t ' A t 4 2 dE e E e 4 2 1 D (1.2.50)
2
For the case of 1, the second term vanishes. It comes to play only in the case
1 . The reason for this is that S1AB 0 0 at 1 , therefore, the integration
lacks the term
1
D
Z n
e En En B En En A En (1.2.51)
However, the correlation function does have contribution from this term. In the case
1
of anticommutator, spectral density S AB E does not vanishes at E 0 .Hence, we
need to add D to the integration, resulting in equation (1.2.50), so it can cover both
cases.
With a suitable choice of operators, using fundamental spectral theorem, one
can calculate the physical quantity of interest. For example, if operators are chosen
to be creation and annihilation a and a of some particle, whether it is boson or
fermion, from the theorem we can find the average value of total number of that
particles in the system, namely n aa . Another example is in spin system, in
23
which from spectral density S S S E one can relate to the magnetization, since
S S S2 Sz2 Sz .
1.3) Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction

In ferromagnet, there are two phases, separated by the Curie temperature.
They are paramagnetic phase and polarized phase [5,6]. For the temperatures above
the Curie point, the magnetization in ferromagnet is randomly distributed. In
contrast, for the temperatures below the Curie temperature, the magnetization
vectors are ordered, align in some direction, see Figure 1.2 and 1.3 [7].
Figure 1.2: Paramagnetic phase Figure 1.3: Polarized phase
The magnetization vector can be represented as m(x). In the polarized phase, the
vector m(x) points in the same direction for every position x.
These 2 phases of ferromagnet are ordinary phases. There are, however,
other types of magnetization profiles occur in extraordinary magnet. For example,
in chiral magnet, there are non-trivial magnetization profiles, called chiralities,
having whirling structures [6,7]. Skyrmion is one of such structures [6,7], see
Figure 1.4.
Figure 1.4: A skyrmion configuration, according to Reference [7]

24
The whirling structures of these spectacular chirality profiles are induced by

indirect exchange interaction. It was first postulated by Igor Dzyaloshinskii on the
ground of phenomenological [8]. Based purely on symmetries, he introduced an
asymmetrical term, beside the usual symmetric term. Later, Toru Moriya found that
strong spin-orbit coupling is responsible for this interaction [9], hence the term
Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya (DM) interaction. Without going into details, here we
conclude that DM interaction occurs due to a lack of inversion symmetry and a
strong spin orbit coupling [7].
An example of materials that has DM interaction, and hence chirality phases,
is MnSi [10]. This compound has inversion symmetry broken, as depicted in Figure
1.5. Besides that, Mnsi has a strong spin-orbit coupling, due to several microscopic
processes that we will not get into.
Figure 1.5: Atomic structure of MnSi. The circles represent atoms, and the dash lines
represent unit cell boundaries [7]
For simplicity, we will treat a system of two spins interacting via DM

interaction. The Hamiltonian is written, according to Reference [7]:

H DM Dij . Si S j (1.3.1)

Where S i and S j are spin vectors of the form S S x , S y , S z . DM interaction is
characterized by vector Dij . The strength of interaction is usually weaker than
symmetric Heisenberg exchange [7]. Its mechanism is depicted in Figure 1.6 [7].
Two atomic spins S i and S j interact via the third ion, which possesses
strong spin-orbit coupling. If we denote ri and r j are spatial vectors drawn from
the two spins to the third ion, then the orientation of DM vector is [11]
Dij ri r j rij x (1.3.2)
25
Figure 1.6: DM interaction between 2 atomic spins (pink circles) via the third one, large
spin-orbit coupled ion (red circle).
The direction of DM vector is Dij ri r j rij x
From this relation, we see that the position of the large spin-orbit coupling ion is
crucial: it defines the broken inversion symmetry direction. If all 3 ions happen to
be on a straight line, there will be no DM interaction, since there is no broken
inversion symmetry. Therefore, the existence of the triangle joining 3 ions
guarantees inversion symmetry broken, and DM vector is always perpendicular to
that triangle.
26
Chapter 2: Research objectives and research methods

2.1) Outline of the problem and research methods
My thesis is strictly based on the report Magnon spectrum at Symmetric
and Antisymmetric Exchange Interactions in Ultrathin film by the authors: Prof.
Cong Thanh Bach, Niem Tu Nguyen, and Giang Huong Bach [12]. Actually, this
paper is a reconfirmation of a part of the calculations and results in that report.
The research method has been used is Greens function method, for
calculation of the magnon spectrum in thin film, whose Hamiltonian consisting of
Heisenberg exchange (symmetric exchange) and Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction
(antisymmetric exchange), as well as few other interactions caused by anisotropy
and external field.
The calculation follows the steps developed in the review section of Greens
function.
Introducing Hamiltonian
Introducing (retarded) Greens functions
Constructing equations of motion of Greens functions
Approximation of higher order Greens functions
Solving for solutions of equations of motion
Self iteration
The last step arises from the fact that when approximation is applied, other
parameters are introduced into equations of motion. The parameters would be
determined by Greens functions through approximations assumptions and the
fundamental spectral theorem, equation (1.2.50). The newly determined parameters
then will modify equations of motion, therefore create a loop of self iteration.
2.2) Content of the research: Greens function method on thin film with
Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction
Side note: for the sake of simplicity, starting from this chapter, we assume
1.
27
2.2.1) The Hamiltonian

Consider a thin film of cubic lattice structure, consisting of n layers and N
spins per layer. The coordinates are chosen such that spin layers are parallel to Oxz
plane, and perpendicular to Oy. The Oz axis is proposed to be in-plane anisotropic
axis, and parallel to external magnetic field direction [12]. The Hamiltonian of the
spin system is given by
1
H g h0 Szj J j ' j'SjS' j' K (Szj )
2
j 2 j ' j' j
(2.2.1)
1 1
jj' SzjSzj' D jj'S j S j'
2 jj' 2 jj'
Where is the layer index ( = 1, 2, , n) and = x, y, z are Cartesian coordinates.

Position of a spin in the film is denote by j, where j is a 2D vector denoting the
planar position of the spin on the layer (see Figure 2.1).
Figure 2.1:Structure of a thin film spin system. Oy is perpendicular to all spin layers, Oz
and Ox lie on layer surface. The anisotropy axis, external field h0, and interfacial DM
vector are chosen to be parallel to Oz.
The first term in the Hamiltonian corresponds to spin energy in external magnetic
field h0 (0, 0, h0). The second term is Heisenberg isotopic exchange interaction
28
between spins. The third term is single ion anisotropy characterized by site-
independent constant K, where the forth one is uni-axial anisotropy with layer-
dependent jj. The last term is interfacial Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya (DM) interaction.
The term interfacial means that inversion symmetry is broken along y-direction.
Based on the discussion in chapter 1, there exists DM interaction between 2 spins
on the same layer, through some third ion on some other layer. The interfacial DM
vector Djj therefore lies on layer s surface and parallel to z-direction, that is Djj
(0, 0, Djj). In addition, we have the relation D j' j D jj' (see [12]).
If we denote Jzj ' j' J j ' j' jj' ' , then we can write H as:
1
H g h0 Szj J j ' j' (SxjSx' j' SyjSy' j' ) K (Szj )
2
j 2 j ' j' j
(2.2.2)
1 1
Jzj ' j' SzjSz' j' D jj' (SxjSyj' SyjSxj' )
2 jj' 2 jj'
We transform into representation of step up, step down spin operators S+ and S-, and
Sz as well. By using equation (1.1.4)
Sj Sxj iSyj
We obtain
SjS' j' SxjSx' j' SyjSy' j' i(SyjSx' j' SxjSy' j' )
SjS' j' SxjSx' j' SyjSy' j' i(SyjSx' j' SxjSy' j' )
Then Hamiltonian reads
1

2
H g h0 Szj J j ' j' SjS' j' SjS' j' K Szj
j 4 j ' j' j
(2.2.3)
1
2 j ' j'
i
Jzj ' j' SzjSz' j' D jj' SjSj' SjSj'
4 jj'
2.2.2) Retarded Greens functions
Based on definition (1.2.19), we write the double time retarded Greens
function of operators Sj t and S' j' t ' as
ret
Sj t ; S' j' t ' i t t ' Sj t , S' j' t '

(2.2.4)
29
Where we have used commutation relation 1 . We investigate Greens functions

of Sj t and S' j' t ' since we interested in spin deviation exchange in the film.
Besides the fact that time independence of the Hamiltonian leads to

homogeneity in time of Greens function (see (1.2.24)), the Greens function is also
homogeneous in space, due to implied in-plane spatial symmetry, as in Reference
[12]:
ret ret
Sj t ; S' j' t ' S j j' t t '

; S'0 0 (2.2.5)
The Greens functions just defined can be Fourier transformed from both time to
energy space and from spatial to momentum space

e
ret ret
d t t ' Sj t ; S' j' t '

1 ik . j j' iE t t '
2
S ; S' (2.2.6)
k ,E j j'

ik . j j'iE t t '
ret ret
Sj t ; S' j' t ' 1
dE
N k
S ; S'
k ,E
e (2.2.7)
Note that the spatial to momentum space Fourier transform involves only 2D in-
plane spatial vector j and 2D in-plane momentum vector k . The y-component,
describe by layer index does not transform.
The Greens functions in energy representation give us poles at excitation
energy, which have been discussed in section 1.2. The other Fourier transform of
Greens functions, from spatial to momentum space, however have other meaning.
ret ret
Those S t ; S' t ' and S ; S' are actually the double time and
k k ,E
energy Greens functions of operators Sk and Sk , which can be interpreted as

annihilation and creation operator of magnon (see section 1.1). This fact can be
made clear by first looking at the in-plane spatial symmetry condition
ret ret
Sj; S' j' S j j' ; S'0

, j
Where we have omitted the energy/time symbols, since it is true for both
representations. If we decompose Sj and S' j' into sums of its Fourier
counterparts, which is similar to equation (1.1.31)
30
Sk eik.jSj Sj eik.jSk
j k
(2.2.8)
Sk e ik . j
Sj Sj eik.jSk
j k
We will have
ret ret
Sk e ;
ik . j j'
k Sk eik.j;
k'
S'k 'eik '.j' k
k'
S'k ' , j
ik . j j' ik 'k .j' ret ik. j j' ret

e
k ,k '
e Sk ; S'k ' e
k ,k '
Sk ; S'k ' , j
In order to satisfy this condition for all j , q must equal q ' . Then
ik . j j'
ret ret
Sj; S' j' e Sk ; S'k (2.2.9)
k
The reverse transformation gives
ik . j j'
ret ret
e
j j'
Sj; S' j' Sk ; S'k (2.2.10)
If we compare two equations (2.2.9) and (2.2.10) to (2.2.6) and (2.2.7), we get
ret ret
S ; S' Sk ; S'k (2.2.11)
k
It means that the Fourier transform of Greens functions from spatial representation
of j vector to momentum representation of k is actually a transformation to
Greens functions of magnon operators (the formal definition requires ak and ak ,
however we can always use Sk and Sk , since they are related through (1.1.24)).
Therefore, by investigating these Greens functions, we can obtain the poles at exact
excitation energies involving magnon creation and annihilation processes. It is the
magnon spectrum we would like to discuss.
2.2.3) The equations of motion of Greens functions

Applying energy representation of Greens functions equations of motion
(1.2.32)
ret ret
1
E Sj; S' j' S j , S ' j' Sj , H ; S' j' (2.2.12)
E 2 E
31
Before using approximation, we need to express explicitly the higher order

Greens functions
ret
ret
S , H ; S S j , g h0 S1j1 ; S ' j'

j ' j' z
E 1j1
E
ret
1

4 1j1 2 j2

S j , J1j1 2 j2 S1j1 S 2 j2 S1j1 S 2 j2 ; S ' j'

E
ret
2

; S
S j , K S1j1
z
' j'
1j1 E
ret
1
S j , J1j1 2 j2 S1j1 S 2 j2 ; S ' j'
z z z
2 1j1 2 j2
E
ret
i

4 1j1j2

S j , D1j1j2 S1j1 S 2 j2 S1j1 S 2 j2
_
; S ' j'

E
With the help of the spin commutators similar to those of (1.1.7)
S z , S S
j ' j' j ' j j '
(2.2.13)
S , S 2S z
j ' j' j ' j j '
We reduce the expression of higher order Greens function to
ret ret ret

S , H ; S g h0 Sj ; S' j' K SjSzj SzjSj ; S' j'
j ' j' E E E
ret ret
1 1
J1j1 j S1j1 Szj ; S' j' J j1j1 SzjS1j1 ; S' j'
2 1j1 E 2 1j1 E
ret ret
1 1
Jzj1j1 SjSz1j1 ; S' j' Jz1j1 j Sz1j1 Sj ; S' j'
2 1j1 E 2 1j1 E
ret ret
i i
D jj1 SzjSj1 ; S' j' D j1j Sj1 Szj ; S' j'
2 j1 E 2 1j1 E
(2.2.14)
Notice that a spin does not interact with itself, that J j j Jzj j D jj 0 .
Additionally, for interaction between 2 different spins, we have J1j1 j J j1j1
32
Jz1j1 j Jzj1j1 , D j1j D jj1 . Utilizing these facts, and the commutator (2.2.13), we
can simplify the expression to:
ret ret ret
S , H ; S g h0 Sj ; S' j' K SjSzj SzjSj ; S' j'
j ' j' E E E
ret ret
J j1j1 SzjS1j1 ; S' j' Jz1j1 j Sz1j1 Sj ; S' j'
1j1 E 1j1 E
ret
i D jj1 SzjSj1 ; S' j'
j1 E
(2.2.15)
2.2.4) Approximation processes

We will use several methods of approximation to decouple higher order
Greens functions in (2.2.15). Such a method is Bogoliubov-Tyablikov decoupling
(other name is Random Phase Approximation, RPA) [1,13]:
ret ret
SzjS1j1 ; S' j' Szj S1j1 ; S' j'
E E
ret
(2.2.16)
Sz S1j1 ; S' j'
E
Where at the last line, we have exploited the in-plane translational symmetry to put
Szj Szj' Sz [1,12]. For the local anisotropy term, due to strong onsite
correlation, Anderson-Callen decoupling method appears to be better [12]:

ret ret
K SjSzj SzjSj ; S' j' K Sj ; S' j' (2.2.17)
E E
Where the function for thin film is obtained from the application to film of the
Callen scheme for bulk by the authors of Reference [14]
1
2 Sz 1 S S 1 Sz
2

2
(2.2.18)

2S

The equation for magnetic moment per site is given by [1,12]

2 S 1
z
S
1 S 2S 1 S 1 (2.2.19)
2 S 1
1 2S 1
33
Sz S S 1 Sz 1 2
2
(2.2.20)
The distribution function is temperature dependent, and can be deternined by

self-iteration method, which will be mentioned latter.
The equation of motion of Greens function now takes the form:
ret ret ret
1
E Sj; S' j' S ,S g h0 Sj; S' j' K Sj; S' j'
E 2 j ' j' E E
ret ret
Sz J j j
j
11
S1j1 ; S' j'
E
Jz1j1 j Sz1
1j1
Sj ; S' j'
E
11
ret
i S z
j D jj 1
Sj1 ; S' j'
E
1
(2.2.21)
2.2.5) Solving equations of motion

a) k-representation of equation of motion
Using Fourier transforms to rewrite all the terms in k representation.
Firstly,
e S ; S'
ret
E g h0 K Sj; S' j' E g h0 K
1 ik j j' ret
E

N k k ,E
(2.2.22)
Then terms involving Heisenberg exchange, that
ret
Sz
J j j
1j1
11

S1j1 ; S' j'
E
1 ik j j1 1 ik ' j1 j'
ret
S z
e J1 k e S1 ; S'

1j1 N k N k' k ', E

ik j j' ret
i k 'k j1 j'

1 1 S1 ; S '
1
N
Sz e J k
e
1
N
k k' k ', E j1

1
e J1 k S1 ; S'
ret
k ' k
ik j j'
Sz

N k k' k ', E
1
e J1 k S1 ; S'
ret
1 ik j j'
Sz
N 1k k ,E
(2.2.23)
34
And
ret
Jz1j1 j Sz1
1j1
Sj; S' j'
E
1 ik ' j1 j 1
e S ; S'
ret
Jz1 k ' Sz1
ik j j'
e
1j1 N k' N k k ,E
1 ik ' j1 j

Jz k ' Sz
1 ik j j' ret
e e S ; S'
1k N 1 1 N k ,E
k' j1
1 ik j j' ret
Jz1 0 Sz1 e S ; S'
1k N k ,E
(2.2.24)
Term involving Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction
ret
i S z

j
D jj 1
Sj1 ; S' j'
E
1
1 1
e 1 D k e 1 S ; S'
ik j j ik ' j j' ret
i Sz j
N
N k '

k ', E
1 k
1 ik j j' ret 1 i k 'k j1 j'
S ; S '
N

i Sz e D k e
N k k' k ', E j1

e D k S ; S'
1 ik j j' ret
i Sz
N k k ,E
(2.2.25)
And finally,
S j j '
1 1 z
S , S
2 j ' j ' '
(2.2.26)
Sz ' e
1 1 ik j j'
N k
Substitute all the transforms above in equation (2.2.21) and we arrive at the k-
representation of the equations of motion:
e E g h0 K S ; S'
1 ik j j' ret

N k k ,E

35
e e Sz J1 k S1 ; S'
ret
1 1 ik j j' 1 ik j j'

Sz '
N k N k 1 k ,E
e Jz2 0 Sz2
1 ik j j' ret

N k 2
S ; S'
k ,E
e i Sz D k S ; S'
1 ik j j' ret

N k k ,E
(2.2.27)
The condition for equality to hold is the left handed side cancels the right handed
side, for each k-component. This leads us to a set of equations, one for each k:
ret
E g h0 K S1 ; S'
1 k ,E
v1
ret
1
Sz ' Sz J1 k S1 ; S'
1 k ,E
ret
Jz2 0 Sz2 S1 ; S' 1 (2.2.28)
1
2 k ,E
ret
i Sz D k S1 ; S' 1
1 k ,E
Or

E g h K J z 0 S z i S D k v S J k
0
2
2

z
1
z
1
1 2
ret
1
S1 ; S' Sz '
k ,E
(2.2.29)
b) Matrix expression of equation of motion

Assuming only nearest neighbor interaction [12], then exchange interaction
J1 k and anisotropy interaction Jz1 0 obtain simple expressions
J1 k e 1 J j1j1
ik j j
j1
36
s
J eikx a eikxa eikz a eikz a
for 1

J1 k
2 J s cos kx a cos k z a (2.2.30)

Jp for 1 1
Jz 1 0 e0 Jzj1j1
j1
4 J s s for 1 1, n

J1 0 4 J s
z
for 1 2,3,..., n 1 (2.2.31)

J p for 1 1
In the formulae above, a is lattice constant, and J s is the nearest neighbor exchange
constant between 2 neighbor spins in a same layer, J P is the nearest neighbor
exchange constant between 2 neighbor spins of adjacent layers. Therefore, each spin
interacts with 4 nearest neighbors in the same layer, and 2 nearest neighbors of
above and below layer. For uniaxial anisotropy , it has different values depending
on whether it is top most and bottom most layer (1 and n) or in-between layers
(from 2 to n-1).
Likewise, the interfacial DM interaction term D k has the form.
D k e 1 D jj1
ik j j
j1

eikx a D eikxa D eikz a D eikz a D 2iD sin k x a sin k z a
(2.2.32)
Upon substitute these expressions, equations of motion take the form

ret
E L J Sz 1, 1 1, 1 S1 ; S'
1
1 Sz ' (2.2.33)
1
P
k ,E
With L taking the values, for 1,n

L1 g h0 4 J s s J s cos k x a cos k z a
1
2
(2.2.34)

D1 sin k x a sin k z a m1 K 1 J P m2
1
2
37

Ln g h0 4 J s s J s cos k x a cos k z a
1
2
(2.2.35)

Dn sin k x a sin k z a mn K n J P mn1
1
2
Where we have used the convenient symbol m Sz for the magnetization of
layer . For 2,3,..., n 1

L g h0 4 J s J s cos k x a cos k z a
1
2
(2.2.36)

D sin k x a sin k z a m K J P m 1 m 1
1
2
The advantage of equation (2.2.33) is that we can cast it into matrix form, as
suggested by Reference [12]
AG (2.2.37)
With matrix A is an n by n sparse matrix
E L1 J P m1 0 . 0 0 0

J P m2 E L2 J P m2 . 0 0 0
A k, E . . . . . . . (2.2.38)

0 0 0 . J P mn1 E Ln1 J P mn1
0 0 0 . 0 J P mn E Ln

The n by n matrix G matrix of Greens functions, whose elements are

ret
G1 ' k, E S1 ; S' (2.2.39)
k ,E
Finally, is a diagonal matrix of the same size as the two above
m1 0 . 0 0

0 m2 . 0 0
1
. . . . . (2.2.40)

0 0 . mn1 0
0 0 . 0 mn

In order to solve this matrix equation, Cramers rule is utilized. Expression

for element of the Greens function matrix is then:
38
ret m A
G k , E S ; S (2.2.41)
k ,E det A
In this equation, A k, E is the minor of the matrix A k , E , obtained by
cutting down row and column of A k , E . For example, A 22 is:
E L1 0 0 . 0 0 0
0 E L3 J P m3 . 0 0 0
0 J P m4 E L4 . 0 0 0
A 22 (2.2.42)
. . . . . . .
0 0 0 . J P mn1 E Ln1 J P mn1
0 0 0 . 0 J P mn1 E Ln
The expression (2.2.41) can be decomposed to find poles of Greens functions.

Suppose that we manage to solve for all of E k which make determinant of
A k , E vanished at each k. Then, at E E k for some E and k
det A k , E 0 G k , E S ; S
ret
(2.2.43)
k , E
Which suggests that Greens function G has a pole at E E , for each k. From
this fact, we modify equation (2.2.41) to see explicitly the poles
G k , E S ; S
ret m k
k ,E

E E k
(2.2.44)
With k called pole-weight of the pole k , whose expression is
A k , E
k (2.2.45)
E E

2.2.6) Self iteration

After obtaining Greens functions and their poles, we can calculate the
temperature dependent function from assumption of the Anderson-Callen
approximation and fundamental spectral theorem. However, we are not going to
derive but accept the formula given below. Further information and proof are in
Reference [1,12]
39
1 k
v (2.2.46)

N k , exp E k / kBT 1
The summation is taken all over poles for each k, and then all over k. The pole-
weights k are given in (2.2.45), and kBT is Boltzmann constant multiplying
temperature T.
This functions , through expression (2.2.19) and (2.2.20) will affect

magnetizations m and parameters of each layer, hence eventually modifying
the set of equations of motion, changing values of poles, and in turn the functions
themselves are affected. Therefore, we need to use self iteration to solve for .
40
Chapter 3: Results and discussions

3.1) Application to mono-layer thin film
In mono-layer thin film, we can get rid of the layer index . There are only
interactions among spins in the layer but not inter-layer. The equation of motion
(2.2.37) reduces:
ret m
E L S ; S k ,E

(3.1.1)
Which allows us to read off k-magnon Greens function

ret m 1
S ; S (3.1.2)
k ,E E L
Whose has single-pole located at E0 k L

E0 k g h0 4 J J cos k x a cos k z a
1
2
(3.1.3)

D sin k x a sin k z a m K
1
2
The pole function allow us to calculate function

1 1
(3.1.4)

N k exp E0 k / kBT 1
The magnetization as a function of is
1 1 3 2
3
m (3.1.5)
1 3
3
These above equations are used to set up the self iteration process.
We further imply that the lattice structure is cubic with the total number of
lattice points is N N x N z . Also, we assume in-plane periodic condition, which
means that two points j jx , jz and j ' jx N x a, jz are identical, so does z-
direction. Then the possible k-vectors take
2 2
kx n, kx n with nx , nz 0,1,..., n 1 (3.1.6)
Nxa x Nxa x
41
3.2) Results and discussions

For convenient, we use J as unit (as in [12]) and denote
K D h kT
, d , h 0 , b , s s (3.1.7)
J J J J J
3.2.1) Magnetization.
The following results are obtained from calculations to system of N 10 10 spins.
Magnetization depends on Interfacial Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction

We should expect that with small interfacial DM interaction, our spin system
will reduce to ferromagnetic spin system. That is, at low temperature, all the spins
align and result in maximum magnetization. As the strength of interfacial DM
interaction increases, the system will favor non-parallel configuration, leading to
smaller value of magnetization compared to the former case (Figure 3.1).
Figure 3.1: Magnetization depends on DM interaction. Parameters: external field h 0 ,

single ion anisotropy 0.5 , uniaxial anisotropy s 0.05 , temperature 0.1
Magnetization depends on single ion anisotropy and external field
42
Figure 3.2: Magnetization depends on single ion anisotropy. Parameters: external field
h 0 , DM interaction d 0.05 , uniaxial anisotropy s 0.05 , temperature 0.1
Figure 3.3: Dependence of magnetization on external field. Parameters: DM interaction

d 0.3 , single ion anisotropy 0.5 , uniaxial anisotropy s 0.05 , temperature
0.5
43
The effect of anisotropy is to align spins parallel to the anisotropy axis, due to
several interactions involving crystal electromagnetic field or dipole interaction [1],
which we would not get into. The effect of external field is obviously to tilt spins
toward fields direction. Since these two interactions are chosen to direct along Oz,
their effects are aligning spins to z-direction and thus increase the z-magnetization.
Figure 3.2 and 3.3 reflect this fact.
Magnetization depends on temperature

As temperature increases, the magnetization of the system should decrease.
When the magnetization reaches 0, our spin system is in paramagnetic phase.
Therefore, by examine the curve of magnetization versus temperature, we can tell
whether the spin system becomes paramagnetics. The temperature at which
transition occurs is known as Curie temperature.
Figure 3.4: Dependence of magnetization on temperature. Parameters: external field

h 0 , DM interaction 0.1, uniaxial anisotropy s 0.05
The above Figure shows that systems with larger DM interaction will have lower
Curie temperature, besides having smaller magnetization. This result is to be
expected, since both temperature and DM interactions effect is reducing
magnetization. Therefore, in system with larger DM interaction, smaller
temperature is needed to bring the system to paramagnetic state.
44
3.2.2) Magnon spectrum

The following results are obtained from calculations of an N 20 20 spin system.
The magnon spectrum E0 k of such system is given in Figure 3.5.
Figure 3.5: Magnon spectrum. Parameters: external field h 0 , DM interaction d 0.6

, single ion anisotropy 1.0 , uniaxial anisotropy s 0.05 , temperature 0.1
Dependence of magnon spectrum on interfacial DM interaction.
From equation (3.1.3), we see that magnon spectrum E0 k takes [1 0 1]
direction as symmetric axis, since the function E0 k x , k z returns identical values

with respect to swapping of k x and k z
E0 k 2mD sin kx a sin k z a 2mJ cos k x a cos k z a const
If DM interaction is 0, magnon spectrum would furthermore have inversion

symmetry with inversion center is the center of Brillouin zone k x 0, k z 0 . In
such case, the band gap (where excitation energy E0 k is minimum) is also
45
located at this point. However when DM interaction is introduced, E0 k and
E0 k will have different values since sine function is an odd function.

Therefore, the band gap is no longer at the center of Brillouin zone. It shifts along
[1 0 1] direction to some other point k D , k D where kD 0 . Figure 3.6 shows
explicitly these shifts.
Since the smaller the excitation energy, the better chance to be excited, the
system will most likely to be excited to state of having magnon with momentum
k k D , k D . Likewise, the asymmetrical shape of magnon spectrum with respect to
center of Brillouin zone will leads to the spin systems preference for spin waves
travelling in a certain direction rather than the others. This is a very interesting
property of Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction.
Figure 3.6: Dependence of magnon spectrum on interfacial DM interaction. Direction

[1 0 1]. Parameters: external field h 0 , single ion anisotropy 1.0 , uniaxial
anisotropy s 0.05 , temperature 0.1
46
Dependence of magnon spectrum on temperature
Temperature modifies magnon spectrum through the magnetization and . The

larger the temperature, the smaller these two quantities. Furthermore, equation
(3.1.3) shows that a large value of magnetization will magnifies the difference
between two values of excitation energies E0 k1 and E0 k 2 at any two different
points in Brillouin zone. Hence, for larger temperatures, the magnon spectrum will
be flatter, compared to the case of lower temperatures with steeper spectrum.
This argument is confirm by Figure 3.7, where magnon spectrum in the case
temperature 1.2 is barely flatted, for this temperature is above Curie temperature. At
lower temperature 1.0 , magnon spectrum is clearly steeper.
Figure 3.7:Temperature dependence of magnon spectrum. Parameters: external field

h 0 , DM interaction d 0.6 , single ion anisotropy 1.0 , uniaxial anisotropy
s 0.05
47
Conclusions
The main results of this thesis are:
1. Concepts of spin wave and Greens function method are briefly reviewed.
2. Greens function method has been applied to thin film with Dzyaloshinskii-
Moriya interaction, resulting in equations for magnon spectrum and
magnetization of each layer.
3. Specifically, the theory has been utilized to monolayer thin film. The
magnon spectrum shows a shift of the band gap when Dzyaloshinskii-
Moriya interaction is introduced. This result then leads to the conclusion that
monolayer thin films with Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction favor spin
waves of particular direction.
The calculation results although are in agreement with our intuition, but
experimental confirmations are still needed. Finally, one should utilize the theory to
investigate further thin films with more layers.
48
References
1. Wolfgang Nolting and Anupuru Ramakanth (2009), Quantum Theory of
Magnetism, Springer, London and New York.
2. Robert M. White (1970), Quantum Theory of Magnetism, McGraw-Hill,
Inc., New York.
3. R. Shankar (1994), Principles of Quantum Mechanics, Springer, London and
New York.
4. T. Holstein and H. Primakoff (1940), Field Dependence of the Intrinsic
Domain Magnetization of a Ferromagnet, Physics Review, Vol. 58, 1098
1113.
5. William D. Callister Jr. (2007), Materials Science and Engineering, John
Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York.
6. Skyrme T. H. R. (1962), A unified field theory of mesons and baryons,
Nuclear Physics, Vol. 31, p. 556-569.
7. Bram Van Dijk (2014), Skyrmions and the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya
interaction, Master thesis, Institute of Theoretical Physics, Utrecht
University.
8. Igor Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya (1958), A thermodynamic theory of weak
ferromagnetism of antiferromagnetics, Journal of Physics and Chemistry of
Solids, Vol. 4, p. 241-255.
9. Toru Moriya (1960), Anisotropic Superexchange Interaction and Weak
Ferromagnetism, Physics Review, Vol. 120, 91.
10. A. Neubauer, C. Pfleiderer, B. Binz, A. Rosch, R. Ritz, P. G. Niklowitz, and
P. Bni (2009), Topological Hall Effect in the A Phase of MnSi, Physics
Review Letters, Vol. 102, 186602.
11. Frederic Keffer (1962), Moriya Interaction and the Problem of the Spin
Arrangements in MnS, Physics Review, Vol. 126, 896
12. Cong Thanh Bach, Niem Tu Nguyen, and Giang Huong Bach (2015),
Magnon Spectrum at Symmetric and Antisymmetric Exchange Interactions
in Ultrathin film, report at the 2nd International Symposium on Frontiers in
Materials Science (Nov 19-21, 2015), Waseda University, Japan.
13. S. V. Tyablikov (1967), Method in the Quantum Theory of Magnetism,
Plenum, New York.
49
14. M. G. Pini, P. Politi, and R. L. Stamps (2005), Anisotropy effects on the

magnetic excitations of a ferromagnetic monolayer below and above Curie
temperature, Physical Review B, Vol. 72, 014454.
50
Appendix: Self iteration process in calculation of

monolayer thin film
The self iteration process has been used to find the right value of the function
in chapter 3 is as followed:
Firstly, we investigate the dependence of magnetization on
Figure A.1: the plot of equation (3.1.5)

From this figure, we conclude that almost all values of m could be obtained from
in the range 80;80 . Moreover, if we restrict ourselves to the positive value
of m only, then the values of phi which should be considered lie in the range
0 ,80 . It is reasonable, since when external field is zero, there is no different

between positive z direction and negative z direction. And when external field is
non zero, in which we choose to be h0 0,0, h0 0 , then m is more likely to be
positive.
Based on the argument above, the first step of the iteration is picking up a
fair amount, maybe 106 , of values of evenly in the range 0 ,80 . Then for
each , we substitute into the equations of magnetization and equation of motion,
51
to find new value of (denote ' , corresponding to new value of magnetization

m ' ). Based on the fact that if it is the right then ' and m ' m , we search
for the value that gives the smallest differences between the old and new values of
and m .
The actual range used is 0 ,200 . However, in many cases when large
value of m is expected, then 0 ,20 is considered. The range is also adjusted in

cases of small expected value of m .
52

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VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI

VNU UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE

TRUNG QUOC PHUNG

SPIN WAVE SPECTRUM OF THIN FILM WITH

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor

Supervisor: Prof. Cong Thanh Bach

Chapter 1: Literature reviews

With the spin operators obeying commutators [1,2]:

Due to these commutators, it is impossible to solve the Hamiltonian in this form.

1.1.2) Step up and step down spin operators

We will look into the actions of these new operators on eigenvectors of S z

Or if we manipulate the first commutator to see that:

Siz S j ij Si +S j Siz (1.1.8)

Siz Si Si +Si Siz Si Siz (1.1.9)

If we act these bunch of operators on the eigenvectors miz of Siz , that

Siz miz miz miz (1.1.10)

Siz Si miz Si Siz miz miz 1 Si miz (1.1.11)

It means that if we act Si on an eigenvector of Siz , we still get an eigenvector of

A side note about properties of S and S z : the eigenvalues of S z can only

eigenvalue equation: S2 m z s s 1 m z [1,3]. Therefore, we can only act S

1.1.3) Holstein-Primakoff transformation

Si miz i miz 1 (1.1.12)

We want to make this expression explicitly. Noticing that:

Si Si Six iSiy Six iSiy Six Siy Siz

miz Si Si miz miz Si2 Siz Siz miz

If all the states miz are normalized, we obtain:

Since z-component of all spins have maximum value s, action of Si turn 0 to

Similar to those operators of harmonic oscillator, these 2 raising and lowering

Since increasing spin deviation reduces z-component spin, we have identity:

Comparison with actions of ai and ai in (1.1.19) suggests that Si and Si can be

These 2 equations, together with Siz s ni , constitute the Holstein-Primakoff

1.1.4) Spin waves

In the equation (1.1.6), we have established the Hamiltonian in terms of Si ,

commutator at (1.1.7), that Si , S j 2 ij Siz , let us write:

Where we used the notation J 0 J ij J ij and N is the number of lattice

So that the Hamiltonian takes the simple quadratic form

Let us apply Fourier transform to the operators

To diagonalize the Hamiltonian:

We also introduce the notation

The Hamiltonian now takes diagonalized form

Which describes a system of uncoupled harmonic oscillators. Based on knowledge

1.2) Greens function method

1.2.1) Spectral density

Here is chemical potential, and N is particle number operator [1]. We use H

Consider an operator describing a physical process, which induces transition of

The intensity of this physical process at energy E is defined by [1]

adjoint operator makes the system changes from state Em to En where

Therefore, only the intensity I E is not enough to describe the

Where 1, 1 refers to commutation, anticommutation properties. This

The Fourier transform of I E reads

t , t ' t t ' t ' t

Is either a commutator ( 1 ) or anticommutator ( 1). For short, we just call

t t ' [1]. To generalize this idea, we introduce the generalized spectral

SAB t t ' A t , B t '

0 SAB t t ' SAB t , t '

i Ent ' i Ent '

i Ht' i Ht i Ht i Ht' i Ht' i Ht'

1.2.2) Double time Greens functions

Retarded Greens function

Advanced Greens function

Casual Greens function

1.2.3) Equation of motion of Greens functions

We do similarly for advanced Greens function. Then we write both of them as in

To feed into time representation equation of motion