No Arabic abstract
Our studies evidence an anisotropic magnetic order below $T_N = 32$~K. Susceptibility data in small fields of about 1~T reveal an antiferromagnetic (AFM) order for $H perp c$, whereas for $H parallel c$ the data are reminiscent of a field-induced ferromagnetic (FM) structure. At low temperatures and for $H perp c$, the field-dependent magnetization and AC susceptibility data evidence a metamagnetic transition at $H^+ = 5$~T, which is absent for $H parallel c$. We assign this to a transition from a planar cycloidal spin structure at low fields to a planar fan-like arrangement above $H^+$. A fully FM polarized state is obtained above the saturation field of $H_{perp S} = 23.7$~T at 2~K with a magnetization of $M_s = 2.8$~$mu_{rm B}{rm /Cr}$. For $H parallel c$, $M(H)$ monotonously increases and saturates at the same $M_s$ value at $H_{parallel S} = 25.1$~T at 4.2~K. Above $T_N $, the magnetic susceptibility and specific heat indicate signatures of two dimensional (2D) frustration related to the presence of planar ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic exchange interactions. We found a pronounced nearly isotropic maximum in both properties at about $T^* = 45$~K, which is a clear fingerprint of short-range correlations and emergent spin fluctuations. Calculations based on a planar 2D Heisenberg model support our experimental findings and suggest a predominant FM exchange among nearest and AFM exchange among third-nearest neighbors. Only a minor contribution might be assigned to the antisymmetric Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction possible related to the non-centrosymmetric polar space group $R3m$. Due to these competing interactions, the magnetism in AgCrSe$_{2}$, in contrast to the oxygen based delafossites, can be tuned by relatively small, experimentally accessible, magnetic fields, allowing us to establish the complete anisotropic magnetic $H-T$ phase diagram in detail.
Recently, several putative quantum spin liquid (QSL) states were discovered in ${tilde S} = 1/2$ rare-earth based triangular-lattice antiferromagnets (TLAF) with the delafossite structure. A way to clarify the origin of the QSL state in these systems is to identify ways to tune them from the putative QSL state towards long-range magnetic order. Here, we introduce the Ce-based TLAF KCeS$_2$ and show via low-temperature specific heat and $mu$SR investigations that it yields magnetic order below $T_{mathrm N} = 0.38$ K despite the same delafossite structure. We identify a well separated ${tilde S} = 1/2$ ground state for KCeS$_2$ from inelastic neutron scattering and embedded-cluster quantum chemical calculations. Magnetization and electron spin resonance measurements on single crystals indicate a strong easy-plane $g$~factor anisotropy, in agreement with the ab initio calculations. Finally, our specific-heat studies reveal an in-plane anisotropy of the magnetic field-temperature phase diagram which may indicate anisotropic magnetic interactions in KCeS$_2$.
The crystal structure and magnetic correlations in triangular antiferromagnet FeGa$_2$S$_4$ are studied by x-ray diffraction, magnetic susceptibility, neutron diffraction and neutron inelastic scattering. We report significant mixing at the cation sites and disentangle magnetic properties dominated by major and minor magnetic sites. The magnetic short-range correlations at 0.77 AA$^{-1}$ correspond to the major sites and being static at base temperature they evolve into dynamic correlations around 30 - 50 K. The minor sites contribute to the magnetic peak at 0.6 AA$^{-1}$, which vanishes at 5.5 K. Our analytical studies of triangular lattice models with bilinear and biquadratic terms provide the ratios between exchanges for the proposed ordering vectors. The modelling of the inelastic neutron spectrum within linear spin wave theory results in the set of exchange couplings $J_1=1.7$,meV, $J_2=0.9$,meV, $J_3=0.8$,meV for the bilinear Heisenberg Hamiltonian. However, not all features of the excitation spectrum are explained with this model.
PbFe$_{1/2}$Ta$_{1/2}$O$_{3}$ (PFT) belongs to the family of PbB$_{x}$B$_{1-x}$O$_{3}$ which have inherent chemical disorder at the B-site. Due to this disorder, a complex magnetic phase diagram is expected in the material. In this paper, we report experimental results of magnetic properties in PFT through macroscopic characterization, neutron scattering and M{o}ssbauer spectroscopy techniques. With these results we show for the first time that PbFe$_{1/2}$Ta$_{1/2}$O$_{3}$ behaves very similar to PbFe$_{1/2}$Nb$_{1/2}$O$_{3}$, i.e, it undergoes AF transition at 153 K and has a spinglass transition at 10 K, below which the antiferromagnetism coexists with spinglass. We suggest that the mechanism which is responsible for such a non-trivial ground state can be explained by a speromagnet-like spin arrangement similar to the one proposed for PbFe$_{1/2}$Nb$_{1/2}$O$_{3}$.
The magnetic phases of a triangular-lattice antiferromagnet, CuCrO$_2$, were investigated in magnetic fields along to the $c$ axis, $H$ // [001], up to 120 T. Faraday rotation and magneto-absorption spectroscopy were used to unveil the rich physics of magnetic phases. An up-up-down (UUD) magnetic structure phase was observed around 90--105 T at temperatures around 10 K. Additional distinct anomalies adjacent to the UUD phase were uncovered and the Y-shaped and the V-shaped phases are proposed to be viable candidates. These ordered phases are emerged as a result of the interplay of geometrical spin frustration, single ion anisotropy and thermal fluctuations in an environment of extremely high magnetic fields.
We present a single crystal neutron diffraction study of the magnetic short-range correlations in Tb$_5$Ge$_4$ which orders antiferromagnetically below the Neel temperature $T_N$ $approx$ 92 K. Strong diffuse scattering arising from magnetic short-range correlations was observed in wide temperature ranges both below and above $T_N$. The antiferromagnetic ordering in Tb$_5$Ge$_4$ can be described as strongly coupled ferromagnetic block layers in the $ac$-plane that stack along the b-axis with weak antiferromagnetic inter-layer coupling. Diffuse scattering was observed along both $a^*$ and $b^*$ directions indicating three-dimensional short-range correlations. Moreover, the $q$-dependence of the diffuse scattering is Squared-Lorentzian in form suggesting a strongly clustered magnetic state that may be related to the proposed Griffiths-like phase in Gd$_5$Ge$_4$.