Stripe and superconducting order competing in the Hubbard model on a square lattice studied by a combined variational Monte Carlo and tensor network method

Abstract

The long-studied Hubbard model is one of the simplest models of copper-oxide superconductors. However, the connection between the model and the experimental phase diagram is still under debate, in particular regarding the existence and extent of the $d$-wave superconducting phase. Recent rapid progress in improving the accuracy of numerical solvers has opened a way to answer this question reliably. Here, we study the hole-doping concentration ($\ensuremath{\delta}$) dependence of the Hubbard model in the ground states on a square lattice at strong coupling $U/t=10$, for the on-site interaction $U$ and the transfer $t$, using a variational Monte Carlo method. The method, which combines tensor network and Lanczos methods on top of Pfaffian wave functions, reveals a rich phase diagram, in which many orders compete severely and degenerate within the energy range of $0.01t$. We have identified distinct phases including a uniform $d$-wave superconducting phase for $0.17\ensuremath{\lesssim}\ensuremath{\delta}\ensuremath{\lesssim}0.22$ and a stripe charge/spin ordered phase for $\ensuremath{\delta}\ensuremath{\lesssim}0.17$ with the stripe period depending on $\ensuremath{\delta}$, together with presumable spatially coexisting antiferromagnetic and stripe order for $\ensuremath{\delta}\ensuremath{\lesssim}0.07$ and coexisting stripe and $d$-wave superconductivity for $0.07\ensuremath{\lesssim}\ensuremath{\delta}\ensuremath{\lesssim}0.17$. The present, improved method revealed a wider region of a charge uniform superconducting phase than the previous studies and shows a qualitative similarity to the phase diagram of the cuprate superconductors. The superconducting order parameter is largest at doping of around $\ensuremath{\delta}=0.17$ in the ground state, which undergoes phase transitions from an inhomogeneous to a uniform state.