Hall Conductivity and Rotational Invariance

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    Quantum hall effect
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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on the absence of Hall conductivity in the context of the Quantum Hall Effect (QHE) in 3+1 dimensions, as outlined in the referenced document. The key point is that the action described in equation (5.5) lacks linear terms in both electric and magnetic fields, which is essential for the emergence of Hall conductivity. By reformulating the action using the Maxwell tensor, it becomes evident that the functional derivative with respect to the gauge field results in zero, confirming the absence of Hall conductivity in this dimensionality.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of Quantum Hall Effect (QHE)
  • Familiarity with Maxwell's equations and tensor notation
  • Knowledge of functional derivatives in theoretical physics
  • Basic concepts of gauge fields and their implications in quantum mechanics
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  • Study the implications of dimensionality on Hall conductivity in quantum systems
  • Explore the derivation and applications of the Maxwell tensor in theoretical physics
  • Investigate the role of linear terms in Hamiltonians for quantum systems
  • Examine the differences between Integer Quantum Hall Effect (IQHE) and Fractional Quantum Hall Effect (FQHE)
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The discussion is beneficial for theoretical physicists, researchers in condensed matter physics, and students studying quantum mechanics, particularly those interested in the Quantum Hall Effect and its underlying principles.

thatboi
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I am reading up on QHE from: https://www.damtp.cam.ac.uk/user/tong/qhe/five.pdf
and am confused about the comment: "The action (5.5) has no Hall conductivity because this is ruled out in d = 3+1 dimensions on rotational grounds." Can someone explain why this is the case? My only guess is that the action in (5.5) contains no linear terms, whereas if we look at the general case in IQHE where have an electric and magnetic field, the Hamiltonian would contain terms linear in the magnetic field and electric field. But I cannot understand why this would necessarily rule out the IQHE?
 
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Ok, I think the easiest way to see this is to rewrite (5.5) using the Maxwell tensor ##F_{\mu\nu}^{2} = 2(\partial_{\mu}A_{\nu})^2-2(\partial_{\mu}A_{\mu})^{2}##. Then we note that taking the functional derivative of the Maxwell action with respect to any specific ##A_{\mu}## necessarily evaluates to ##0## so there is no Hall Conductivity.
 

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