  We describe a theoretical approach for finding spontaneously symmetry-broken
electronic phases due to strong electronic interactions when using recently
developed slave-particle (slave-boson) approaches based on occupation numbers.
We describe why, to date, spontaneous symmetry breaking has proven difficult to
achieve in such approaches. We then provide a total-energy based approach for
introducing auxiliary symmetry breaking fields into the solution of the
slave-particle problem that leads to lowered total energies for symmetry broken
phases. We point out that not all slave-particle approaches yield to energy
lowering: the slave-particle model being used must explicitly describe the
degrees of freedom that break symmetry. Finally, our total energy approach
permits us to greatly simplify the formalism used to achieve a self-consistent
solution between spinon and slave modes while increasing numerical stability
and greatly speeding up the calculations.
