Physical properties of the candidate quantum spin-ice system Pr2Hf2O7

Article

关键词: TEMPERATURE MAGNETIC-PROPERTIES;    ISING PYROCHLORE MAGNETS;    MONOPOLES;    HO2TI2O7;    TRANSITION;    DY2TI2O7;    LIQUID;    MODEL;   

DOI  :  10.1103/PhysRevB.94.144415

来源: SCIE

【 摘 要 】

Physical properties of a pyrohafnate compound Pr2Hf2O7 have been investigated by ac magnetic susceptibility chi(ac)(T), dc magnetic susceptibility chi(T), isothermal magnetization M(H), and heat-capacity C-p(T) measurements on polycrystalline as well as single-crystal samples combined with high-resolution synchrotron x-ray diffraction (XRD) for structural characterization and inelastic neutron scattering (INS) to determine the crystal-field energy-level scheme and wave functions. Synchrotron XRD data confirm the ordered cubic pyrochlore (Fd (3) over barm) structure without any noticeable site mixing or oxygen deficiency. No clear evidence of long-range magnetic ordering is observed down to 90 mK, however the chi(ac)(T) evinces slow spin dynamics revealed by a frequency dependent broad peak associated with spin freezing. The INS data reveal the expected five well-defined magnetic excitations due to crystal-field splitting of the J = 4 ground-state multiplet of the Pr3+. The crystal-field parameters and ground-state wave function of Pr3+ have been determined. The Ising anisotropic nature of the magnetic ground state is inferred from the INS as well as chi(T) and M(H) data. Together these properties make Pr2Hf2O7 a candidate compound for quantum spin-ice behavior.

【 授权许可】

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