Metal-to-Insulator Transition, Spin Gap Generation, and Charge Ordering in Geometrically Frustrated Electron Systems

We investigate a (semi-)metal to insulator transition (MIT) realized in geometrically frustrated electron systems on the basis of the Hubbard model on a three-dimensional pyrochlore lattice and a two-dimensional checkerboard lattice. Using the renormalization group method and mean field analysis, we show that in the half-filling case, MIT occurs as a result of the interplay between geometrical frustration and electron correlation. In the insulating phase, which has a spin gap, the spin rotational symmetry is not broken, while charge ordering exists. The charge ordered state is stabilized so as to relax the geometrical frustration in the spin degrees of freedom. We also discuss the distortion of the lattice structure caused by the charge ordering. The results are successfully applied to the description of the MIT observed in the pyrochlore system ${\rm Tl_2Ru_2O_7}$.