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Quantum critical phase of FeO spans conditions of Earth’s lower mantle

Author

Listed:
  • Wai-Ga D. Ho

    (Florida State University)

  • Peng Zhang

    (Shaanxi Province Key Laboratory of Advanced Functional Materials and Mesoscopic Physics, School of Physics, Xi’an Jiaotong University)

  • Kristjan Haule

    (Rutgers University)

  • Jennifer M. Jackson

    (California Institute of Technology)

  • Vladimir Dobrosavljević

    (Florida State University)

  • Vasilije V. Dobrosavljevic

    (California Institute of Technology
    Carnegie Institution for Science)

Abstract

Seismic and mineralogical studies have suggested regions at Earth’s core-mantle boundary may be highly enriched in FeO, reported to exhibit metallic behavior at extreme pressure-temperature (P–T) conditions. However, underlying electronic processes in FeO remain poorly understood. Here we explore the electronic structure of B1-FeO at extreme conditions with large-scale theoretical modeling using state-of-the-art embedded dynamical mean field theory (eDMFT). Fine sampling of the phase diagram reveals that, instead of sharp metallization, compression of FeO at high temperatures induces a gradual orbitally selective insulator-metal transition. Specifically, at P–T conditions of the lower mantle, FeO exists in an intermediate quantum critical state, characteristic of strongly correlated electronic matter. Transport in this regime, distinct from insulating or metallic behavior, is marked by incoherent diffusion of electrons in the conducting t2g orbital and a band gap in the eg orbital, resulting in moderate electrical conductivity (~105 S/m) with modest P–T dependence as observed in experiments. Enrichment of solid FeO can thus provide a unifying explanation for independent observations of low seismic velocities and elevated electrical conductivities in heterogeneities at Earth’s mantle base.

Suggested Citation

  • Wai-Ga D. Ho & Peng Zhang & Kristjan Haule & Jennifer M. Jackson & Vladimir Dobrosavljević & Vasilije V. Dobrosavljevic, 2024. "Quantum critical phase of FeO spans conditions of Earth’s lower mantle," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-8, December.
  • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:15:y:2024:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-024-47489-w
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-47489-w
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Vasilije V. Dobrosavljevic & Dongzhou Zhang & Wolfgang Sturhahn & Stella Chariton & Vitali B. Prakapenka & Jiyong Zhao & Thomas S. Toellner & Olivia S. Pardo & Jennifer M. Jackson, 2023. "Melting and defect transitions in FeO up to pressures of Earth’s core-mantle boundary," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-10, December.
    2. Kenji Ohta & Yasuhiro Kuwayama & Kei Hirose & Katsuya Shimizu & Yasuo Ohishi, 2016. "Experimental determination of the electrical resistivity of iron at Earth’s core conditions," Nature, Nature, vol. 534(7605), pages 95-98, June.
    3. Tingxin Li & Shengwei Jiang & Lizhong Li & Yang Zhang & Kaifei Kang & Jiacheng Zhu & Kenji Watanabe & Takashi Taniguchi & Debanjan Chowdhury & Liang Fu & Jie Shan & Kin Fai Mak, 2021. "Continuous Mott transition in semiconductor moiré superlattices," Nature, Nature, vol. 597(7876), pages 350-354, September.
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    Cited by:

    1. Stuart Russell & Jessica C. E. Irving & Robert Myhill & Sanne Cottaar, 2024. "The emerging picture of a complex core-mantle boundary," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-3, December.

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