Electronic structure of UTe$_2$ under pressure

Abstract

A heavy-fermion paramagnet UTe$_2$ has been a strong candidate for a spin-triplet superconductor. Experiments on \ute under pressure have been vigorously conducted, and rich phase diagrams have been suggested. Multiple superconducting phases exist in the pressure region of $0 \leq P < 1.8 \mathrm{\;GPa}$, and an antiferromagnetic ordered state is observed in the high-pressure region $P > 1.8 \mathrm{\;GPa}$. However, under pressure, an underlying electronic structure in the normal state has not been clarified, although knowledge of electronic structures is essential for studying magnetic and superconducting states. As an indispensable step toward understanding the phase diagram of UTe$_2$, we study the electronic structure under hydrostatic and uniaxial pressures based on density functional theory with and without employing structural optimization. It is shown that the low-energy band structure and Fermi surfaces are not sensitive to pressure for parameters where itinerant $f$-electrons are not essential. However, we find significant pressure dependence for particular Coulomb interaction $U$ of the GGA+$U$ calculation, where the large weight of $f$-electrons appears on the Fermi level. We also discuss the possibility of a pressure-induced Lifshitz transition accompanied by the topological superconducting transition. The electronic structure can change from three-dimensional to two-dimensional under uniaxial pressure along the [010] and [001] axes.