An external magnetic field can induce a transition in $alpha$-RuCl$_3$ from an ordered zigzag state to a disordered state that is possibly related to the Kitaev quantum spin liquid. Here we present new field dependent inelastic neutron scattering and
magnetocaloric effect measurements implying the existence of an additional transition out of the quantum spin liquid phase at an upper field limit $B_u$. The neutron scattering shows three distinct regimes of magnetic response. In the low field ordered state the response shows magnon peaks; the intermediate field regime shows only continuum scattering, and above $B_u$ the response shows sharp magnon peaks at the lower bound of a strong continuum. Measurable dispersion of magnon modes along the $(0,0,L)$ direction implies non-negligible inter-plane interactions. Combining the magnetocaloric effect measurements with other data a $T-B$ phase diagram is constructed. The results constrain the range where one might expect to observe quantum spin liquid behavior in $alpha$-RuCl$_3$.
The crystallographic and magnetic properties of the cleavable 4d3 transition metal compound a-MoCl3 are reported, with a focus on the behavior above room temperature. Crystals were grown by chemical vapor transport and characterized using temperature
dependent x-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, and magnetization measurements. A structural phase transition occurs near 585 K, at which the Mo-Mo dimers present at room temperature are broken. A nearly regular honeycomb net of Mo is observed above the transition, and an optical phonon associated with the dimerization instability is identified in the Raman data and in first-principles calculations. The crystals are diamagnetic at room temperature in the dimerized state, and the magnetic susceptibility increases sharply at the structural transition. Moderately strong paramagnetism in the high-temperature structure indicates the presence of local moments on Mo. This is consistent with results of spin-polarized density functional theory calculations using the low- and high-temperature structures. Above the magnetostructural phase transition the magnetic susceptibility continues to increase gradually up to the maximum measurement temperature of 780 K, with a temperature dependence that suggests two-dimensional antiferromagnetic correlations.
Disorder among surface spins largely dominates the magnetic response of ultrafine magnetic particle systems. In this work, we examine time-dependent magnetization in high-quality, monodisperse hollow maghemite nanoparticles with a 14.8 $pm$ 0.5 nm ou
ter diameter and enhanced surface-to-volume ratio. The nanoparticle ensemble exhibits spin-glass-like signatures in dc magnetic aging and memory protocols and ac magnetic susceptibility. The dynamics of the system slows near 50 K, and becomes frozen on experimental time scales below 20 K. Remanence curves indicate the development of magnetic irreversibility concurrent with the freezing of the spin dynamics. A strong exchange-bias effect and its training behavior point to highly frustrated surface spins that rearrange much more slowly than interior spins with bulk coordination. Monte Carlo simulations of a hollow particle reproducing the experimental morphology corroborated strongly disordered surface layers with complex energy landscapes that underlie both glass-like dynamics and magnetic irreversibility. Calculated hysteresis loops reveal that magnetic behavior is not identical at the inner and outer surfaces, with spins at the outer surface layer of the 15 nm hollow particles exhibiting a higher degree of frustration. Our study sheds light on the origin of spin-glass-like phenomena and the role of surface spins in magnetic hollow nanostructures.
