Hyperbolic fractional Chern insulators

Abstract

Fractional Chern insulators (FCIs) have attracted intensive attention for the realization of fractional quantum Hall states in the absence of an external magnetic field. Most FCIs have been proposed on two-dimensional (2D) Euclidean lattice models with various boundary conditions. In this work, we investigate hyperbolic FCIs which are constructed in hyperbolic geometry with constant negative curvature. Through the studies on hyperbolic analogs of kagome lattices with hard-core bosons loaded into topological flat bands, we find convincing numerical evidences of two types of 𝜈=1/2 FCI states, i.e., conventional and unconventional FCIs. Multiple branches of edge excitations and geometry-dependent wave functions for both conventional and unconventional 𝜈=1/2 FCI states are revealed. Intriguingly, the geometric degree of freedom plays various roles for these two FCIs. Additionally, a center-localized orbital plays a crucial role in the unconventional FCI state.