It is well known that the optical branches of the dispersion curves of ionic crystals exhibit a polaritonic feature, i.e., a splitting about the electromagnetic dispersion line ω = ck. This phenomenon is considered to be due to the retardation of the electromagnetic forces among the ions. However, the problem is usually discussed at a phenomenological level, through the introduction of a macroscopic polarization field, so that a microscopic treatment is apparently lacking. A microscopic first principles deduction is given here, in a classical frame, for a model in which the ions are dealt with as point charges. At a qualitative level it is made apparent that retardation is indeed responsible for the splitting. A quantitative comparison with the empirical data for LiF is also given, showing a fairly good agreement over the whole Brillouin zone.

Classical microscopic theory of polaritons in ionic crystals

Sanzeni, Alessandro;
2014

Abstract

It is well known that the optical branches of the dispersion curves of ionic crystals exhibit a polaritonic feature, i.e., a splitting about the electromagnetic dispersion line ω = ck. This phenomenon is considered to be due to the retardation of the electromagnetic forces among the ions. However, the problem is usually discussed at a phenomenological level, through the introduction of a macroscopic polarization field, so that a microscopic treatment is apparently lacking. A microscopic first principles deduction is given here, in a classical frame, for a model in which the ions are dealt with as point charges. At a qualitative level it is made apparent that retardation is indeed responsible for the splitting. A quantitative comparison with the empirical data for LiF is also given, showing a fairly good agreement over the whole Brillouin zone.
2014
2014
Lerose, Alessio; Sanzeni, Alessandro; Carati, Andrea; Galgani, Luigi
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11565/4052876
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