Structural behaviour of PbMn$_{7}$O$_{12}$ has been studied by high resolution synchrotron X-ray powder diffraction. This material belongs to a family of quadruple perovskite manganites that exhibit an incommensurate structural modulation associated
with an orbital density wave. It has been found that the structural modulation in PbMn$_{7}$O$_{12}$ onsets at 294 K with the incommensurate propagation vector $mathbf{k}_s=(0,0,sim2.08)$. At 110 K another structural transition takes place where the propagation vector suddenly drops down to a emph{quasi}-commensurate value $mathbf{k}_s=(0,0,2.0060(6))$. The emph{quasi}-commensurate phase is stable in the temperature range of 40K - 110 K, and below 40 K the propagation vector jumps back to the incommensurate value $mathbf{k}_s=(0,0,sim2.06)$. Both low temperature structural transitions are strongly first order with large thermal hysteresis. The orbital density wave in the emph{quasi}-commensurate phase has been found to be substantially suppressed in comparison with the incommensurate phases, which naturally explains unusual magnetic behaviour recently reported for this perovskite. Analysis of the refined structural parameters revealed that that the presence of the emph{quasi}-commensurate phase is likely to be associated with a competition between the Pb$^{2+}$ lone electron pair and Mn$^{3+}$ Jahn-Teller instabilities.
Spin density waves, based on modulated local moments, are usually associated with metallic materials, but have recently been reported in insulators which display coupled magnetic and structural order parameters. We discuss one such example, the multi
ferroic Cu$_3$Nb$_2$O$_8$, which is reported to undergo two magnetic phase transitions, first to a spin density wave phase at $T_N approx 26.5K$, and then to a helicoidal structure coupled to an electric polarization below $T_2 approx 24K$ [R. D. Johnson, et al., Phys. Rev. Lett., 107, 137205 (2011)] which breaks the crystallographic inversion symmetry. We apply spherical polarimetry to confirm the low-temperature magnetic structure, yet only observe a single magnetic phase transition to helicoidal order. We argue that the reported spin density wave originates from a decoupling of the components of the magnetic order parameter, as allowed by symmetry and driven by thermal fluctuations. This provides a mechanism for the magnetic, but not nuclear, structure to break inversion symmetry thereby creating an intermediate phase where the structure imitates a spin density wave. As the temperature is reduced, this intermediate structure destabilizes the crystal such that a structural chirality is induced, as reflected by the emergence of the electric polarization, and the imitation spin density wave relaxes into a generic helicoid. This provides a situation where the magnetic structure breaks inversion symmetry while the crystal structure remains centrosymmetric.
Ba$_{3}$NbFe$_{3}$Si$_{2}$O$_{14}$ (langasite) is structurally and magnetically single domain chiral with the magnetic helicity induced through competing symmetric exchange interactions. Using neutron scattering, we show that the spin-waves in antife
rromagnetic langasite display directional anisotropy. On applying a time reversal symmetry breaking magnetic field along the $c$-axis, the spin wave energies differ when the sign is reversed for either the momentum transfer $pm$ $vec{Q}$ or applied magnetic field $pm$ $mu_{0}$H. When the field is applied within the crystallographic $ab$-plane, the spin wave dispersion is directionally textit{isotropic} and symmetric in $pm$ $mu_{0}$H. However, a directional anisotropy is observed in the spin wave intensity. We discuss this directional anisotropy in the dispersion in langasite in terms of a field induced precession of the dynamic unit cell staggered magnetization. Directional anisotropy, or often referred to as non reciprocal responses, can occur in antiferromagnetic phases in the absence of the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction or other effects resulting from spin-orbit coupling.
We report structural studies of the spin-orbit Mott insulator family K$_x$Ir$_y$O$_2$, with triangular layers of edge-sharing IrO$_6$ octahedra bonded by potassium ions. The potassium content acts as a chemical tuning parameter to control the amount
of charge in the Ir-O layers. Unlike the isostructural families with Ir replaced by Co or Rh ($y=1$), which are metallic over a range of potassium compositions $x$, we instead find insulating behaviour with charge neutrality achieved via iridium vacancies, which order in a honeycomb supercell above a critical composition $x_c$. By performing density functional theory calculations we attribute the observed behaviour to a subtle interplay of crystal-field environment, local electronic correlations and strong spin-orbit interaction at the Ir$^{4+}$ sites, making this structural family a candidate to display Kitaev magnetism in the experimentally unexplored regime that interpolates between triangular and honeycomb structures.
We investigate the low-temperature magnetic properties of the molecule-based chiral spin chain [Cu(pym)(H$_2$O)$_4$]SiF$_6cdot$H$_2$O (pym = pyrimidine). Electron-spin resonance, magnetometry and heat capacity measurements reveal the presence of stag
gered $g$ tensors, a rich low-temperature excitation spectrum, a staggered susceptibility and a spin gap that opens on the application of a magnetic field. These phenomena are reminiscent of those previously observed in non-chiral staggered chains, which are explicable within the sine-Gordon quantum-field theory. In the present case, however, although the sine-Gordon model accounts well for the form of the temperature-dependence of the heat capacity, the size of the gap and its measured linear field dependence do not fit with the sine-Gordon theory as it stands. We propose that the differences arise due to additional terms in the Hamiltonian resulting from the chiral structure of [Cu(pym)(H$_2$O)$_4$]SiF$_6cdot$H$_2$O, particularly a uniform Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya coupling and a four-fold periodic staggered field.
We report a neutron powder diffraction study of $R$Mn$_7$O$_{12}$ quadruple perovskite manganites with $R$ = La, Ce, Nd, Sm, and Eu. We show that in all measured compounds concomitant magnetic ordering of the $A$ and $B$ manganese sublattices occurs
on cooling below the N$mathrm{acute{e}}$el temperature. The respective magnetic structures are collinear, with one uncompensated Mn$^{3+}$ moment per formula unit as observed in bulk magnetisation measurements. We show that both LaMn$_7$O$_{12}$ and NdMn$_7$O$_{12}$ undergo a second magnetic phase transition at low temperature, which introduces a canting of the $B$ site sublattice moments that is commensurate in LaMn$_7$O$_{12}$ and incommensurate in NdMn$_7$O$_{12}$. This spin canting is consistent with a magnetic instability originating in the $B$ site orbital order. Furthermore, NdMn$_7$O$_{12}$ displays a third magnetic phase transition at which long range ordering of the Nd sublattice modifies the periodicity of the incommensurate spin canting. Our results demonstrate a rich interplay between transition metal magnetism, orbital order, and the crystal lattice, which may be fine tuned by cation substitution and rare earth magnetism.
We present the discovery and refinement by neutron powder diffraction of a new magnetic phase in the Na1-xCaxMn7O12 quadruple perovskite phase diagram, which is the incommensurate analogue of the well-known pseudo-CE phase of the simple perovskite ma
nganites. We demonstrate that incommensurate magnetic order arises in quadruple perovskites due to the exchange interactions between A and B sites. Furthermore, by constructing a simple mean field Heisenberg exchange model that generically describes both simple and quadruple perovskite systems, we show that this new magnetic phase unifies a picture of the interplay between charge, magnetic and orbital ordering across a wide range of compounds.
Vortices are among the simplest topological structures, and occur whenever a flow field `whirls around a one-dimensional core. They are ubiquitous to many branches of physics, from fluid dynamics to superconductivity and superfluidity, and are even p
redicted by some unified theories of particle interactions, where they might explain some of the largest-scale structures seen in todays Universe. In the crystalline state, vortex formation is rare, since it is generally hampered by long-range interactions: in ferroic materials (ferromagnetic and ferroelectric), vortices are only observed when the effects of the dipole-dipole interaction is modified by confinement at the nanoscale, or when the parameter associated with the vorticity does not couple directly with strain. Here, we present the discovery of a novel form of vortices in antiferromagnetic (AFM) hematite ($alpha$-Fe$_2$O$_3$) epitaxial films, in which the primary whirling parameter is the staggered magnetisation. Remarkably, ferromagnetic (FM) topological objects with the same vorticity and winding number of the $alpha$-Fe$_2$O$_3$ vortices are imprinted onto an ultra-thin Co ferromagnetic over-layer by interfacial exchange. Our data suggest that the ferromagnetic vortices may be merons (half-skyrmions, carrying an out-of-plane core magnetisation), and indicate that the vortex/meron pairs can be manipulated by the application of an in-plane magnetic field, H$_{parallel}$, giving rise to large-scale vortex-antivortex annihilation.
Through analysis of variable temperature neutron powder diffraction data, we present solutions for the magnetic structures of SrMn$_7$O$_{12}$, CdMn$_7$O$_{12}$, and PbMn$_7$O$_{12}$ in all long-range ordered phases. The three compounds were found to
have magnetic structures analogous to that reported for CaMn$_7$O$_{12}$. They all feature a higher temperature lock-in phase with emph{commensurate} magneto-orbital coupling, and a delocked, multi-textbf{k} magnetic ground state where emph{incommensurate} magneto-orbital coupling gives rise to a constant-moment magnetic helix with modulated spin helicity. CdMn$_7$O$_{12}$ represents a special case in which the orbital modulation is commensurate with the crystal lattice and involves stacking of fully and partially polarized orbital states. Our results provide a robust confirmation of the phenomenological model for magneto-orbital coupling previously presented for CaMn$_7$O$_{12}$. Furthermore, we show that the model is universal to the $A^{2+}$ quadruple perovskite manganites synthesised to date, and that it is tunable by selection of the $A$-site ionic radius.
We have directly imaged reversible electrical switching of the cycloidal rotation direction (magnetic polarity) in a (111)-BiFeO3 epitaxial-film device at room temperature by non-resonant x-ray magnetic scattering. Consistent with previous reports, f
ully relaxed (111)-BiFeO3 epitaxial films consisting of a single ferroelectric domain were found to comprise a sub-micron-scale mosaic of magneto-elastic domains, all sharing a common direction of the magnetic polarity, which was found to switch reversibly upon reversal of the ferroelectric polarization without any measurable change of the magneto-elastic domain population. A real-space polarimetry map of our device clearly distinguished between regions of the sample electrically addressed into the two magnetic states with a resolution of a few tens of micron. Contrary to the general belief that the magneto-electric coupling in BiFeO3 is weak, we find that electrical switching has a dramatic effect on the magnetic structure, with the magnetic moments rotating on average by 90 degrees at every cycle.
