Variational study of the magnetization plateaus in the spin- 1 2 kagome Heisenberg antiferromagnet: An approach from vision transformer neural quantum states
Abstract
We analyze the magnetization curve of the spin-1/2 kagome Heisenberg model in a magnetic field. Using state-of-the-art variational wave functions based on neural networks, we confirm the presence of robust magnetization plateaus at $m=1/3$, $5/9$ and $7/9$ of the saturation value, stabilized by a spontaneous symmetry breaking of lattice translations with a $\sqrt{3}\times \sqrt{3}$ unit cell. Regarding the more challenging $m=1/9$ plateau, we find two competing valence bond crystals depending on the system size, both breaking translation as well as point group symmetries and with a larger $3\times 3$ unit cell. Such quantum states with local modulations of the magnetization average values could be observed experimentally in the near future.
Fields of Study & Subjects
Advanced Condensed Matter Physics
Quantum many-body systems
Physics of Superconductivity and Magnetism
Publication details
- Journal / source
- Physical review. B./Physical review. B
- Volume
- 114
- Issue
- 7
- Pages
- 074410
- Publication date
- 17 June 2026
- Language
- EN