| Full text | |
| Author(s): Show less - |
Gass, S.
;
Consoli, P. M.
;
Kocsis, V
;
Corredor, L. T.
;
Lampen-Kelley, P.
;
Mandrus, D. G.
;
Nagler, S. E.
;
Janssen, L.
;
Vojta, M.
;
Buechner, B.
;
Wolter, A. U. B.
Total Authors: 11
|
| Document type: | Journal article |
| Source: | PHYSICAL REVIEW B; v. 101, n. 24, p. 13-pg., 2020-06-25. |
| Abstract | |
High-resolution thermal expansion and magnetostriction measurements were performed on single crystals of alpha-RuCl3 in magnetic fields applied parallel to the Ru-Ru bonds. The length changes were measured in the direction perpendicular to the honeycomb planes. Our data show clear thermodynamic characteristics for the field-induced phase transition at the critical field mu H-0(c1) = 7.8(2) T where the antiferromagnetic zigzag order is suppressed. At higher fields, a kink in the magnetostriction coefficient signals an additional transition or crossover around mu H-0(c2) approximate to 11 T. The extracted Gruneisen ratio shows typical hallmarks for quantum criticality near H-c1 but also displays anomalous behavior above H-c1. We compare our experimental data with spin-wave calculations employing a minimal Kitaev-Heisenberg model in the semiclassical limit. Most of the salient features are in agreement with each other, however, the peculiar features in the region above H-c1 cannot be accounted for in our semiclassical modeling and hence suggest a genuine quantum nature. We construct a phase diagram for alpha-RuCl3 in a magnetic field along the Ru-Ru bonds, displaying a zigzag ordered state below H-c1, a quantum paramagnetic regime between H-c1 and H-c2 and a semiclassical partially polarized state above H-c2. (AU) | |
| FAPESP's process: | 19/02099-0 - Melting the vortex crystal in the Heisenberg-Kitaev model in a magnetic field |
| Grantee: | Pedro Monteiro Cônsoli |
| Support Opportunities: | Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Master's degree |