Effective model for Pb$_9$Cu(PO$_4$)$_6$O

Abstract

The copper substituted Pb-apatite has attracted a great deal of attention recently, due to the claim of the observation of room temperature superconductivity. Based on LDA calculations in the literature, we propose an effective model that describe the low energy physics. It consists of stacks of buckled honeycomb lattices, with Cu and O occupying the A and B sites respectively. In addition to the narrow Cu bands that have been emphasized, we call attention to the relatively small energy separation between the Cu and O orbitals. Thus despite the small hoping energies, the model may be in an interesting regime near the metal insulator transition driven by the charge transfer mechanism. Relationship with cuprates and the organic superconductors are discussed.