Itinerant ferromagnetic phase of the Hubbard model

Using a quantum Monte Carlo technique, we provide strong evidence for the stability of a saturated ferromagnetic phase in the high-density regime of the two-dimensional infinite-U Hubbard model. By decreasing the electron density, we observe a discontinuous transition to a paramagnetic phase, accompanied by a divergence of the susceptibility on the paramagnetic side. This behavior, resulting from a high degeneracy among different spin sectors, is consistent with an infinite-order phase transition. The remarkable stability of itinerant ferromagnetism renews the hope of describing this phenomenon within a purely kinetic mechanism and will facilitate the validation of experimental quantum simulators with cold atoms loaded in optical lattices