Magnetic order and excitations in the magnetically intercalated van der Waals material Cr${}_{\frac{1}{4}}$NbSe${}_2$

Abstract

Cr${}_{\frac{1}{4}}$NbSe${}_2$ is a triangular lattice magnet in which magnetic Cr${}^{3+}$ ions are intercalated to form triangular lattices between NbSe${}_2$ van der Waals layers stacked along the c axis. By unpolarized and polarized neutron scattering experiments, we have revealed that the magnetic ground state of this system is a 120${}^{\circ }$-type antiferromagnetic order characterized by the magnetic propagation wave vector of $q=(\frac{1}{3},\frac{1}{3},0)$. We also performed inelastic neutron scattering measurements using co-aligned single crystals, and determined dispersion relations of magnetic excitations at low temperatures. Comparing the observed spectra with calculations based on the linear spin-wave theory, we revealed that the out-of-plane ferromagnetic interaction is fairly strong as compared to the in-plane nearest neighbor antiferromagnetic interaction. Although the crystal structure of this system is composed of two-dimensional van der Waals layers, the magnetic order has a three dimensional character, which would be attributed to long-range magnetic interactions mediated by conduction electrons.

13 pages, 12 figures