On the relative stability of the metallic and the insulating states of a half-filled band

Abstract

The electronic state of a half-filled band may become insulating rather than metallic so as to minimize electron–electron repulsion. The insulating state of a half-filled band can be magnetic as in ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic states or nonmagnetic as in a charge density wave state. The relative stability of these metallic and insulating states was studied within the framework of Hartree–Fock band theory in order to examine the conditions that make the insulating state of a half-filled band magnetic or nonmagnetic.