We describe a new mechanism leading to the formation of rational magnetization plateau phases, which is mainly due to the anharmonic spin-phonon coupling. This anharmonicity produces plateaux in the magnetization curve at unexpected values of the magnetization without explicit magnetic frustration in the Hamiltonian and without an explicit breaking of the translational symmetry. These plateau phases are accompanied by magneto-elastic deformations which are not present in the harmonic case.
Iron telluride doped lightly with selenium is known to undergo a first order magneto-structural transition before turning superconducting at higher doping. We study the effects of magneto-elastic couplings on this transition using symmetry considerations. We find that the magnetic order parameters are coupled to the uniform monoclinic strain of the unit cell with one iron per cell, as well as to the phonons at high symmetry points of the Brillouin zone. In the magnetic phase the former gives rise to monoclinic distortion while the latter induces dimerization of the ferromagnetic iron chains due to alternate lengthening and shortening of the nearest-neighbour iron-iron bonds. We compare this system with the iron arsenides and propose a microscopic magneto-elastic Hamiltonian which is relevant for all the iron based superconductors. We argue that this describes electron-lattice coupling in a system where electron-electron interaction is crucial.
We study the magnetic excitations on top of the plateaux states recently discovered in spin-Peierls systems in a magnetic field. We show by means of extensive density matrix renormalization group (DMRG) computations and an analytic approach that one single spin-flip on top of $M=1-frac2N$ ($N=3,4,...$) plateau decays into $N$ elementary excitations each carrying a fraction $frac1N$ of the spin. This fractionalization goes beyond the well-known decay of one magnon into two spinons taking place on top of the M=0 plateau. Concentrating on the $frac13$ plateau (N=3) we unravel the microscopic structure of the domain walls which carry fractional spin-$frac13$, both from theory and numerics. These excitations are shown to be noninteracting and should be observable in x-ray and nuclear magnetic resonance experiments.
Magnetoelastic properties in field-induced magnetic ordered phases are studied theoretically based on a Ginzburg-Landau theory. A critical field for the field-induced ordered phase is obtained as a function of temperature and pressure, which determine the phase diagram. It is found that magnetic field dependence of elastic constant decreases discontinuously at the critical field, Hc, and that it decreases linearly with field in the ordered phase (H>Hc). We found an Ehrenfest relation between the field dependence of the elastic constant and the pressure dependence of critical field. Our theory provides the theoretical form for magnetoelastic properties in field- and pressure-induced ordered phases.
The crystal structure of the double tungstate NaFe(WO$_4$)$_2$ arises from that of the spin-driven multiferroic MnWO$_4$ by inserting non-magnetic Na layers. NaFe(WO$_4$)$_2$ exhibits a three-dimensional incommensurate spin-spiral structure at low temperature and zero magnetic field, which, however, competes with commensurate order induced by magnetic field. The incommensurate zero-field phase corresponds to the condensation of a single irreducible representation but it does not imply ferroelectric polarization because spirals with opposite chirality coexist. Sizable anharmonic modulations emerge in this incommensurate structure, which are accompanied by large magneto-elastic anomalies, while the onset of the harmonic order is invisible in the thermal expansion coefficient. In magnetic fields applied along the monoclinic axis, we observe a first-order transition to a commensurate structure that again is accompanied by large magneto-elastic effects. The large magnetoelastic coupling, a reduction of the $b$ lattice parameter, is thus associated only with the commensurate order. Upon releasing the field at low temperature, the magnetic order transforms to another commensurate structure that considerably differs from the incommensurate low-temperature phase emerging upon zero-field cooling. The latter phase, which exhibits a reduced ordered moment, seems to be metastable.
We use combine high resolution neutron diffraction (HRPD) with density functional theory (DFT) to investigate the exchange striction at the Curie temperature (TC) of Fe2P and to examine the effect of boron and carbon doping on the P site. We find a significant contraction of the basal plane on heating through TC with a simultaneous increase of the c-axis that results in a small overall volume change of ~0.01%. At the magnetic transition the FeI-FeI distance drops significantly and becomes shorter than FeI-FeII . The shortest metal-metalloid (FeI-PI) distance also decreases sharply. Our DFT model reveals the importance of the latter as this structural change causes a redistribution of the FeI moment along the c-axis (Fe-P chain). We are able to understand the site preference of the dopants, the effect of which can be linked to the increased moment on the FeI-site, brought about by strong magneto-elasticity and changes in the electronic band structure.