Abstract:

Quasiparticle collapsing is a central issue in the study of strongly correlated electron systems. In the one-dimensional case, the quasiparticle collapsing in a form of spin-charge separation has been well established, but the problem remains elusive in dimensions higher than one. By using density matrix renormalization group (DMRG) algorithm, we show that in an anisotropic two-leg t-J ladder, an injected single hole behaves like a well-defined quasiparticle in the strong rung limit, but undergoes a ``phase transition'' with the effective mass diverging at a critical point towards the isotropic limit. After the transition, the quasiparticle collapses into a composite object of a self-localized charge (holon) and a deconfined spin-1/2 (spinon), accompanied by a substantially enhanced binding energy between two holes. We discuss the underlying novel mechanism, which may be generic for a doped Mott insulator of any dimensions.
 
 
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