Unveiling novel resonant interband contribution to polarizability in three-dimensional systems

Abstract Polarizability plays an essential role in characterizing key phenomena, such as the screening effects, collective excitations, and dielectric functions present in the system. In three-dimensional (3D) materials, it typically comprises an intraband contribution, dependent on the chemical potential, and an interband contribution, largely independent of it. In this study, within the random phase approximation framework, we uncover a novel interband contribution that, unlike the conventional case, exhibits an explicit dependence on the chemical potential, which has no counterpart in two dimensions. In the long-wavelength limit, this term introduces a resonance feature with cubic wave-vector dependence when the chemical potential approaches the band edge, in contrast to the quadratic behavior characteristic of standard intraband and interband processes. Focusing on 3D Dirac nodal line semimetals, we show that the polarizability is intraband-dominated at low frequencies, while interband processes prevail at intermediate and high frequencies, with the overall response being tunable via the chemical potential. Material-specific estimates for Ca 3 P 2 and ZrSiS reveal a strong tunability of both contributions. These findings open new directions for probing frequency-dependent dielectric properties and hold promise for applications in tunable plasmonic and optoelectronic devices.