We study the zero-temperature many-body properties of twisted bilayer graphene with a twist angle equal to the so-called “first magic angle.” The system low-energy single-electron spectrum consists of four (eight, if spin label is accounted) weakly dispersing partially degenerate bands, each band accommodating one electron per Moiré cell per spin projection. This weak dispersion makes electrons particularly susceptible to the effects of interactions. Introducing several excitonic order parameters with spin-density-wave-like structure, we demonstrate that (i) the band degeneracy is partially lifted by the interaction and (ii) the details of the low-energy spectrum become doping dependent. For example, at or near the undoped state, interactions separate the eight bands into two quartets (one quartet is almost filled; the other is almost empty), while for two electrons per Moiré cell, the quartets are pulled apart, and doublets emerge. When the doping is equal to one or three electrons per cell, the doublets split into singlets. Hole doping produces similar effects. As a result, electronic properties (e.g., the density of states at the Fermi energy) demonstrate oscillating dependence on the doping concentration. This allows us to reproduce qualitatively the behavior of the conductance observed recently in experiments [Cao et al., Nature (London) 556, 80 (2018)]. Near half-filling, the electronic spectrum loses hexagonal symmetry indicating the appearance of a many-body nematic state.

• Received 24 July 2018
• Revised 12 December 2018

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.100.045111