Cuprate Fermi orbits and Fermi arcs: the effect of short-range antiferromagnetic order

We consider the effect of a short antiferromagnetic correlation length $\xi$ on the electronic bandstructure of the underdoped cuprates. Starting with a Fermi-surface topology similar to that detected in magnetic quantum-oscillation experiments, we show that a reduced $\xi$ gives an assymmetric broadening of the quasiparticle dispersion, resulting in simulated ARPES data very similar to those observed in experiment. Predicted features include the presence of `Fermi arcs' close to $a{\bf k}=(\pi/2,\pi/2)$, without the need to invoke a d-wave pseudogap order parameter. The statistical variation in the ${\bf k}$-space areas of the reconstructed Fermi surface pockets causes the quantum oscillations to be strongly damped, even in very strong magnetic fields, in agreement with experiment.