Magnetic electron-hole asymmetry in cuprates: a computational revisit

Abstract

In this work, we revisit the electron–hole asymmetry of the antiferromagnetic (AFM) response in cuprates by studying the three-band Emery model. Using parameters relevant to La2CuO4, we benchmark the AFM response for a large range of dopings with variational Monte Carlo, determinant quantum Monte Carlo, constrained-path auxiliary-field quantum Monte Carlo, density-matrix embedding theory, and the Gutzwiller approximation. Across methods and accessible sizes/temperatures, we find no significant electron–hole asymmetry in the Néel AFM response when the comparison is restricted to the AFM channel. This result is robust to a moderate oxygen-site repulsion Up and to parameter sets of Nd2CuO4. Incorporating dopant-induced local potentials reveals an extrinsic route to asymmetry: Cu-site defects enhance AFM on the electron-doped side, whereas O-site defects suppress it on the hole-doped side. These results indicate that dopant-driven effects make a non-negligible contribution to apparent electron–hole asymmetry in cuprate AFM magnetism and provide an AFM-channel benchmark for studies of competing orders.