Spin Density Waves in an Electron Gas

Nov 1, 1962
15 pages
Published in:
  • Phys.Rev. 128 (1962) 1437-1452

Citations per year

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Abstract: (APS)
It is shown rigorously that the paramagnetic state of an electron gas is never the Hartree-Fock ground state, even in the high-density—or weak-interaction—limit. The paramagnetic state is always unstable with respect to formation of a static spin density wave. The instability occurs for spin-density waves having a wave vector Q≈2kF, the diameter of the Fermi sphere. It follows that the (Hartree-Fock) spin susceptibility of the paramagnetic state is not a monotonic decreasing function with increasing Q, but rather a function with a singularity near Q=2kF. Rather convincing experimental evidence that the antiferromagnetic ground state of chromium is a large-amplitude spin density wave state is summarized. A number of consequences of such states are discussed, including the problem of detecting them by neutron diffraction.