Oscillations in the magnetothermal conductivity of $\mathbf{\alpha }$-RuCl${}_3$: Evidence of transition anomalies

Abstract

The 2D layered insulator $\alpha$-RuCl${}_3$ is a candidate material for a quantum spin-liquid state, which may be realized when a magnetic field suppresses the antiferromagnetic order present at low temperature. Oscillations in the field dependence of the thermal conductivity, observed for an in-plane magnetic field $B$ up to a critical field $B^{\star }$, have been attributed to exotic charge-neutral fermions, viewed as evidence of a quantum spin-liquid state between the critical field $B_c$ $\simeq 7$ T at which the antiferromagnetic phase ends and $B^{\star }$. Here we report measurements of the thermal conductivity of $\alpha$-RuCl${}_3$ as a function of magnetic field up to 15 T applied in two distinct in-plane directions: parallel and perpendicular to the Ru-Ru bond. We find that the number of oscillations between $B_c$ and $B^{\star }$ is the same for the two field directions even though the field interval between $B_c$ and $B^{\star }$ is different. In other words, the period of the oscillations is controlled by the transition fields $B_c$ and $B^{\star }$. We conclude that these are not true oscillations -- coming from putative fermions in a spin-liquid state -- but anomalies associated with a sequence of magnetic transitions.

7 pages, 8 figures

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• Field-induced intermediate ordered phase and anisotropic interlayer interactions in $\alpha$-RuCl${}_3$
• Thermodynamic perspective on the field-induced behavior of $\alpha$-RuCl${}_3$
• Origin of oscillatory structures in the magnetothermal conductivity of the putative Kitaev magnet $\alpha$-RuCl${}_3$
• Investigation of the magnetoelastic coupling anisotropy in the Kitaev material $\alpha$-RuCl${}_3$
• Evidence for the first-order topological phase transition in a Kitaev spin liquid candidate $\alpha$-RuCl${}_3$
• Stacking faults in $\alpha$-RuCl${}_3$ revealed by local electric polarization

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• Stacking disorder and thermal transport properties of $\alpha$-RuCl${}_3$
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• Unconventional Magnetic Oscillations in Kagome Mott Insulators
• The sample-dependent and sample-independent thermal transport properties of $\alpha$-RuCl${}_3$
• Phonon thermal transport shaped by strong spin-phonon scattering in a Kitaev material Na${}_2$Co${}_2$TeO${}_6$
• The Saga of $\alpha$-RuCl${}_3$: Parameters, Models, and Phase Diagrams
• Charge-Neutral Electronic Excitations in Quantum Insulators
• Short-range order and hidden energy scale in geometrically frustrated magnets
• Magnetothermal transport in ultraclean single crystals of Kitaev magnet $\alpha$-RuCl${}_3$
• On the multi-$\mathbf{q}$ characteristics of magnetic ground states of honeycomb cobalt oxides
• Quantum Oscillations in an Impurity-Band Anderson Insulator
• Multinode quantum spin liquids in extended Kitaev honeycomb models: the view from variational Monte Carlo
• Intermediate field-induced phase of the honeycomb magnet BaCo${}_2$(AsO${}_4$)${}_2$
• The Detection of Unconventional Quantum Oscillations in Insulating 2D Materials
• Intermediate phases in $\alpha$-RuCl${}_3$ under in-plane magnetic field via interlayer spin interactions
• Field tuning Kitaev systems for spin fractionalization and topological order
• Jordan-Wigner composite-fermion liquids in 2D quantum spin-ice
• Bond disorder in extended Heisenberg-Kitaev models: Spin textures and in-gap states in the high-field regime
• Dynamical Response of the Kitaev Spin Liquid under Third-Nearest-Neighbor Heisenberg Interaction
• Direct probe of magnetic field effects on phonons by ultrasound propagation in a quasi-two-dimensional honeycomb magnet Na${}_2$Co${}_2$TeO${}_6$