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arXiv · 2009.12476

Magnetization Plateau Observed by Ultra-High Field Faraday Rotation in a Kagomé Antiferromagnet Herbertsmithite

Ryutaro Okuma·Daisuke Nakamura·Shojiro Takeyama
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Abstract

To capture the high-field magnetization process of herbertsmithite (ZnCu3(OH)6Cl2), Faraday rotation (FR) measurements were carried out on a single crystal in magnetic fields of up to 190 T. The magnetization data evaluated from the FR angle exhibited a saturation behavior above 150 T at low temperatures, which was attributed to the 1/3 magnetization plateau. The overall behavior of the magnetization process was reproduced by theoretical models based on the nearest-neighbor Heisenberg model. This suggests that herbertsmithite is a proximate kagome antiferromagnet hosting an ideal quantum spin liquid in the ground state. A distinguishing feature is the superlinear magnetization increase, which is in contrast to the Brillouin function-type increase observed by conventional magnetization measurements and indicates a reduced contribution from free spins located at the Zn sites to the FR signal.

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Ryutaro Okuma, Daisuke Nakamura, Shojiro Takeyama. 2020-09-26. Magnetization Plateau Observed by Ultra-High Field Faraday Rotation in a Kagomé Antiferromagnet Herbertsmithite. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevb.102.104429

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