Owen Benton

Are Multiphase Competition and Order by Disorder the Keys to Understanding Yb(2)Ti(2)O(7)

If magnetic frustration is most commonly known for undermining long-range order, as famously illustrated by spin liquids, the ability of matter to develop new collective mechanisms in order to fight frustration is perhaps no less fascinating, providing an avenue for the exploration and discovery of unconventional behaviors. Here, we study a realistic minimal model where a number of such mechanisms converge, which, incidentally, pertain to the perplexing quantum spin ice candidate Yb(2)Ti(2)O(7). Specifically, we explain how thermal and quantum fluctuations, optimized by order-by-disorder selection, conspire to expand the stability region of a degenerate continuous U(1) manifold against the classical splayed ferromagnetic ground state that is displayed by the sister compound Yb(2)Ti(2)O(7). The resulting competition gives rise to multiple phase transitions, in striking similitude with recent experiments on Yb(2)Ti(2)O(7) [Lhotel et al., Phys. Rev. B 89, 224419 (2014)]. By combining a gamut of numerical techniques, we obtain compelling evidence that such multiphase competition is a natural engine for the substantial sample-to-sample variability observed in Yb(2)Ti(2)O(7) and is the missing key to ultimately understand the intrinsic properties of this material. As a corollary, our work offers a pertinent illustration of the influence of chemical pressure in rare-earth pyrochlores.

Theory of multiple-phase competition in pyrochlore magnets with anisotropic exchange with application to Yb2Ti2O7, Er2Ti2O7, and Er2Sn2O7

The family of magnetic rare-earth pyrochlore oxides R2M2O7 plays host to a diverse array of exotic phenomena, driven by the interplay between geometrical frustration and spin-orbit interaction, which leads to anisotropy in both magnetic moments and their interactions. In this article we establish a general, symmetry-based theory of pyrochlore magnets with anisotropic exchange interactions. Starting from a very general model of nearest-neighbor exchange between Kramers ions, we find four distinct classical ordered states, all with q=0, competing with a variety of spin liquids and unconventional forms of magnetic order. The finite-temperature phase diagram of this model is determined by Monte Carlo simulation, supported by classical spin-wave calculations. We pay particular attention to the region of parameter space relevant to the widely studied materials Er2Ti2O7, Yb2Ti2O7, and Er2Sn2O7. We find that many of the most interesting properties of these materials can be traced back to the “accidental” degeneracies where phases with different symmetries meet. These include the ordered ground-state selection by fluctuations in Er2Ti2O7, the dimensional reduction observed in Yb2Ti2O7, and the lack of reported magnetic order in Er2Sn2O7. We also discuss the application of this theory to other pyrochlore oxides.Han Yan, 2 Owen Benton, 3 Ludovic Jaubert, 4 and Nic Shannon 2, 3 Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, Onna-son, Okinawa 904-0412, Japan Clarendon Laboratory, University of Oxford, Parks Rd., Oxford OX1 3PU, UK H. H. Wills Physics Laboratory, University of Bristol, Tyndall Av, Bristol BS8–1TL, UK Rudolf Peierls Centre for Theoretical Physics, University of Oxford, 1–6 Keeble Rd, Oxford OX1 3NP, UK (Dated: November 15, 2013)

A kagome map of spin liquids from XXZ to Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya ferromagnet

Despite its deceptive simplicity, few concepts have more fundamental implications than chirality, from the therapeutic activity of drugs to the fundamental forces of nature. In magnetic materials, chirality gives rise to unconventional phenomena such as the anomalous Hall effect and multiferroicity, taking an enhanced flavour in the so-called spin-liquid phases where magnetic disorder prevails. Kagome systems sit at the crossroad of these ideas. Motivated by the recent synthesis of rare-earth kagome materials and the progresses in optical-lattice experiments, we bring together an entire network of spin liquids with anisotropic and Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interactions. This network revolves around the Ising antiferromagnet and ends on (ferromagnetic) chiral spin liquids with spontaneously broken time-reversal symmetry. As for the celebrated Heisenberg antiferromagnet, it now belongs to a triad of equivalently disordered phases. The present work provides a unifying theory of kagome spin liquids with time-reversal invariant nearest-neighbour Hamiltonians.

Competing Spin Liquids and Hidden Spin-Nematic Order in Spin Ice with Frustrated Transverse Exchange

Frustration in magnetic interactions can give rise to disordered ground states with subtle and beautiful properties. The spin ices Ho2Ti2O7 and Dy2Ti2O7 exemplify this phenomenon, displaying a classical spin-liquid state, with fractionalized magnetic-monopole excitations. Recently, there has been great interest in closely related “quantum spin-ice” materials, following the realization that anisotropic exchange interactions could convert spin ice into a massively entangled, quantum spin liquid, where magnetic monopoles become the charges of an emergent quantum electrodynamics. Here we show that even the simplest model of a quantum spin ice, the XXZ model on the pyrochlore lattice, can realize a still-richer scenario. Using a combination of classical Monte Carlo simulation, semiclassical molecular-dynamics simulation, and analytic field theory, we explore the properties of this model for frustrated transverse exchange. We find not one, but three competing forms of spin liquid, as well as a phase with hidden, spin-nematic order. We explore the experimental signatures of each of these different states, making explicit predictions for inelastic neutron scattering. These results show an intriguing similarity to experiments on a range of pyrochlore oxides.

A spin-liquid with pinch-line singularities on the pyrochlore lattice

The mathematics of gauge theories lies behind many of the most profound advances in physics in the past 200 years, from Maxwells theory of electromagnetism to Einsteins theory of general relativity. More recently it has become clear that gauge theories also emerge in condensed matter, a prime example being the spin-ice materials which host an emergent electromagnetic gauge field. In spin-ice, the underlying gauge structure is revealed by the presence of pinch-point singularities in neutron-scattering measurements. Here we report the discovery of a spin-liquid where the low-temperature physics is naturally described by the fluctuations of a tensor field with a continuous gauge freedom. This gauge structure underpins an unusual form of spin correlations, giving rise to pinch-line singularities: line-like analogues of the pinch points observed in spin-ice. Remarkably, these features may already have been observed in the pyrochlore material Tb2Ti2O7.

Generic nearest-neighbor kagome model: XYZ and Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya couplings with comparison to the pyrochlore-lattice case

The kagome lattice is a paragon of geometrical frustration, long-studied for its association with novel ground states including spin liquids. Many recently synthesized kagome materials feature rare-earth ions, which may be expected to exhibit highly anisotropic exchange interactions. The consequences of this combination of strong exchange anisotropy and extreme geometrical frustration are yet to be fully understood. Here, we establish a general picture of the interactions and resulting ground states arising from nearest-neighbor exchange anisotropy on the kagome lattice. We determine a generic anisotropic exchange Hamiltonian from symmetry arguments. In the high-symmetry case where reflection in the kagome plane is a symmetry of the system, the generic nearest-neighbor Hamiltonian can be locally defined as an XYZ model with out-of-plane Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interactions. We proceed to study its phase diagram in the classical limit, making use of an exact reformulation of the Hamiltonian in terms of irreducible representations (irreps) of the lattice symmetry group. This reformulation in terms of irreps naturally explains the threefold mapping between three families of models supporting spin liquids, as recently studied by the present authors [Nat. Commun. 7, 10297 (2016)]. In addition, a number of unusual states are stabilized in the regions where different forms of ground-state order compete, including a stripy phase with a local Z8 symmetry and a classical analog of a chiral spin liquid. As a peculiar property of the kagome lattice, the generic model turns out to be a fruitful hunting ground for the coexistence, in the same ground-state configuration, of multiple forms of long-range magnetic orders. In exotic instances, partial long-range order may also coexist in the ground state with a finite fraction of disordered spin degrees of freedom. These results are compared and contrasted with those obtained on the pyrochlore lattice, and connection is made with recent progress in understanding quantum models with S=1/2.

Reentrance of disorder in the anisotropic shuriken Ising model

Frustration is often a key ingredient for reentrance mechanisms. Here we study the frustrated anisotropic shuriken Ising model, where it is possible to extend the notion of reentrance between disordered phases, i.e., in absence of phase transitions. By tuning the anisotropy of the lattice, we open a window in the phase diagram where magnetic disorder prevails down to zero temperature, in a classical analogy with a quantum critical point. In this region, the competition between multiple disordered ground states gives rise to a double crossover where both the low- and high-temperature regimes are less correlated than the intervening classical spin liquid. This reentrance of disorder is characterized by an entropy plateau and a multistep Curie law crossover. Our theory is developed based on Monte Carlo simulations, analytical Husimi-tree calculations and an exact decoration-iteration transformation. Its relevance to experiments, in particular, artificial lattices, is discussed.

Ground State Selection and Spin-Liquid Behaviour in the Classical Heisenberg Model on the Breathing Pyrochlore Lattice

Magnetic pyrochlore oxides, including the spin ice materials, have proved to be a rich field for the study of geometrical frustration in three dimensions. Recently, a new family of magnetic oxides has been synthesised in which half of the tetrahedra in the pyrochlore lattice are inflated relative to the other half, making an alternating array of small and large tetrahedra. These “breathing pyrochlore” materials such as LiGaCr4O8, LiInCr4O8, and Ba3Yb2Zn5O11 provide new opportunities in the study of frustrated magnetism. Here we provide an analytic theory for the ground state phase diagram and spin correlations for the minimal model of magnetism in breathing pyrochlores: a classical nearest neighbour Heisenberg model with different exchange coefficients for the two species of tetrahedra. We find that the phase diagram comprises a Coulombic spin liquid phase, a conventional ferromagnetic phase and an unusual antiferromagnetic phase with lines of soft modes in reciprocal space, stabilised by an order-by-diso...