Novel magnetism on a honeycomb lattice in a-RuCl3 studied by muon spin rotation

Abstract

Muon spin rotation measurements have been performed on a powder sample of a-RuCl3, a layered material which previously has been proposed to be a quantum magnet on a honeycomb lattice close to a quantum spin liquid ground state. Our data reveal two distinct phase transitions at 11 K and 14 K which we interpret as originating from the onset of three-dimensional order and in-plane magnetic order, respectively. We identify, with the help of density functional theory calculations, likely muon stopping sites and combine these with dipolar field calculations to show that the two measured muon rotation frequencies are consistent with two inequivalent muon sites within a zig-zag antiferromagnetic structure proposed previously.

5 pages, 5 figures, plus Supplemental Information

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Cited by in corpus (22)

• Models and Materials for Generalized Kitaev Magnetism
• Phase Diagram of $\alpha$-RuCl${}_3$ in an in-plane Magnetic Field
• The Chemistry of Quantum Spin Liquids
• Dynamics of the Kitaev-Heisenberg Model
• Unveiling Magnetic Interactions of Ruthenium Trichloride via Constraining Direction of Orbital moments: Potential Routes to Realize Quantum Spin Liquid
• Possible Structural Transformation and Enhanced Magnetic Fluctuations in Exfoliated $\alpha$-RuCl${}_3$
• Experimental signatures of quantum and topological states in frustrated magnetism
• Destabilization of magnetic order in a dilute Kitaev spin liquid candidate
• J-freezing and Hund's rules in spin-orbit-coupled multiorbital Hubbard models
• Electronically highly cubic conditions for Ru in alpha-RuCl3
• DFT+μ: Density Functional Theory for Muon Site Determination
• Magnetic anisotropy of the alkali iridate Na${}_2$IrO${}_3$ at high magnetic fields: evidence for strong ferromagnetic Kitaev correlations
• Kitaev Quantum Spin Liquids
• Unusual spin dynamics in the low-temperature magnetically ordered state of Ag${}_3$LiIr${}_2$O${}_6$
• Local spin structure of the $\alpha$-RuCl${}_3$ honeycomb-lattice magnet observed via muon spin rotation/relaxation
• Magnetism in Kitaev Quantum Spin Liquid Candidate RuBr${}_3$
• Low temperature enhancement of ferromagnetic Kitaev correlations in α-RuCl3
• Persistent spin dynamics in magnetically ordered honeycomb cobalt oxides
• Orbitally-selective Breakdown of the Fermi Liquid and Simultaneous Enhancement of Metallic and Insulating States in Correlated Multi-band Systems with Spin-orbit Coupling
• Strongly frustrated 2D magnetism in a 3D hexagonal perovskite
• Low-temperature spin dynamics and absence of magnetic order in layered $\alpha$-RuI${}_3$
• Magnetotropic Response in Ruthenium Chloride