Strong electron correlations and ligand hybridization for altermagnetism

[2605.14248] Strong electron correlations and ligand hybridization for altermagnetism Skip to main content Search Submit Donate Log in Condensed Matter > Strongly Correlated Electrons arXiv:2605.14248 (cond-mat) [Submitted on 14 May 2026 ( v1 ), last revised 27 Aug 2026 (this version, v2)] Title: Strong electron correlations and ligand hybridization for altermagnetism Authors: Byungkyun Kang , Anderson Janotti , Dai Q. Ho , Myoung-Hwan Kim , Chul Hong Park , Sangkook Choi , Mark R. Pederson , Eunja Kim View PDF HTML (experimental) Abstract: Spin-band splitting is a hallmark of altermagnetism, intrinsically linked to magnetic ordering driven by electron correlations. However, recent inconsistencies in the detection of altermagnetism in strongly correlated altermagnet candidates have cast doubt on the robustness of this phenomenon and its dependence on many-body effects. Here, density functional theory combined with dynamical mean-field theory (DFT+DMFT), we dissect the electronic origins of altermagnetism in three prototypical candidates: MnF$_2$, MnTe, and RuO$_2$. In MnF$_2$, we identify pronounced local electron correlations within Mn-3$d$ states and uncover a distinct Mott gap in the visible range. The strong correlations markedly localize the Mn-3$d$ electrons, leading to a narrowing of the spin-resolved bandwidth and, consequently, a suppression of spin-band splitting. By contrast, MnTe provides an ideal platform for altermagnetism, exhibiting substantial local Mn-3$d$ magnetic moments due to the strong correlations and pronounced spin-band splitting, enabled by robust Mn-3$d$--Te-5$p$ orbital hybridization. RuO$_2$ manifests as a Pauli paramagnet with vanishing local moments, even in its antiferromagnetic phase. Nonetheless, it exhibits significant spin-band splitting, indicative of itinerant altermagnetic behavior. Our results reveal that both strong local electron correlations and judicious ligand selection to promote orbital hybridization are key prerequisites to realizing altermagnetism in strongly correlated systems. These insights pave the way for the rational design and discovery of novel altermagnetic materials. Subjects: Strongly Correlated Electrons (cond-mat.str-el) Cite as: arXiv:2605.14248 [cond-mat.str-el] (or arXiv:2605.14248v2 [cond-mat.str-el] for this version) https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2605.14248 Focus to learn more arXiv-issued DOI via DataCite Submission history From: Byungkyun Kang [ view email ] [v1] Thu, 14 May 2026 01:31:45 UTC (8,803 KB) [v2] Thu, 27 Aug 2026 20:46:59 UTC (9,424 KB) Full-text links: Access Paper: View PDF HTML (experimental) TeX Source view license Current browse context: cond-mat.str-el < prev | next > new | recent | 2026-05 Change to browse by: cond-mat References & Citations NASA ADS Google Scholar Semantic Scholar export BibTeX citation Bookmark Bibliographic Tools Bibliographic and Citation Tools Bibliographic Explorer Toggle Bibliographic Explorer ( What is the Explorer? ) Connected Papers Toggle Connected Papers ( What is Connected Papers? ) Litmaps Toggle Litmaps ( What is Litmaps? ) scite.ai Toggle scite Smart Citations ( What are Smart Citations? ) Code, Data, Media Code, Data and Media Associated with this Article alphaXiv Toggle alphaXiv ( What is alphaXiv? ) Links to Code Toggle CatalyzeX Code Finder for Papers ( What is CatalyzeX? ) DagsHub Toggle DagsHub ( What is DagsHub? ) GotitPub Toggle Gotit.pub ( What is GotitPub? ) Huggingface Toggle Hugging Face ( What is Huggingface? ) ScienceCast Toggle ScienceCast ( What is ScienceCast? ) Demos Demos Replicate Toggle Replicate ( What is Replicate? ) Spaces Toggle Hugging Face Spaces ( What is Spaces? ) Spaces Toggle TXYZ.AI ( What is TXYZ.AI? ) Related Papers Recommenders and Search Tools Link to Influence Flower Influence Flower ( What are Influence Flowers? ) Core recommender toggle CORE Recommender ( What is CORE? ) IArxiv recommender toggle IArxiv Recommender ( What is IArxiv? ) Author Venue Institution Topic About arXivLabs arXivLabs: experimental projects with community collaborators arXivLabs is a framework that allows collaborators to develop and share new arXiv features directly on our website. Both individuals and organizations that work with arXivLabs have embraced and accepted our values of openness, community, excellence, and user data privacy. arXiv is committed to these values and only works with partners that adhere to them. Have an idea for a project that will add value for arXiv's community? Learn more about arXivLabs . Which authors of this paper are endorsers? | Disable MathJax ( What is MathJax? ) We gratefully acknowledge support from our major funders , member institutions , and all contributors. About · Help · Contact · Subscribe · Copyright · Privacy · Accessibility · Operational Status (opens in new tab) Major funding support from

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