Skyrmions and Quantum Hall Ferromagnets in Improved Composite-Boson Theory

Abstract

An improved composite-boson theory of quantum Hall ferromagnets is proposed. It is tightly related with the microscopic wave-function theory. The characteristic feature is that the field operator describes solely the physical degrees of freedom representing the deviation from the ground state. It presents a powerful tool to analyze excited states within the \LLLd. Excitations include a Goldstone mode and nonlocal topological solitons. Solitons are vortices and Skyrmions carrying the U(1) and SU(2) topological charges, respectively. Their classical configurations are derived from their microscopic wave functions. The activation energy of one Skyrmion is estimated, which explains experimental data remarkably well.