Hard core repulsion and supersolid cluster crystals

Abstract: We study the effect of a short-ranged hard-core repulsion on the stability and superfluid properties of the cluster crystal phase of two-dimensional (2D) soft core bosons. Results of Quantum Monte Carlo simulations on a cogent test case suggest that the main physical properties of the phase remain unaltered if the range d of the inner repulsive core is sufficiently short, even if the strength of the repulsion is several orders of magnitude greater than the outer soft core barrier. Only if d is an appreciable fraction of the size of the clusters (> 5%) does a sufficiently strong hard core repulsion cause the crystal to break down into a homogeneous superfluid; a moderate inner core repulsion enhances the superfluid response of the crystalline phase.