Possible Inversion Symmetry Breaking in the S=1/2 Pyrochlore Heisenberg Magnet

We address the ground-state properties of the long-standing and much-studied three-dimensional quantum spin liquid candidate, the $S=\frac{1}{2}$ pyrochlore Heisenberg antiferromagnet. By using SU(2) density-matrix renormalization group (DMRG), we are able to access cluster sizes of up to 128 spins. Our most striking finding is a robust spontaneous inversion symmetry breaking, reflected in an energy density difference between the two sublattices of tetrahedra, familiar as a starting point of earlier perturbative treatments. We also determine the ground-state energy, ${E}_{0}/{N}_{\text{sites}}=\ensuremath{-}0.490(6)J$, by combining extrapolations of DMRG with those of a numerical linked cluster expansion. These findings suggest a scenario in which a finite-temperature spin liquid regime gives way to a symmetry-broken state at low temperatures.