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Hanru Wang

Publications and source records attributed to Hanru Wang.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

Universality of the $1/9$ Magnetization Plateau and Quantum-Disordered States in the Kagome Family $\mathrm{Cs_8AB_3Ti_{12}F_{48}}$ ($A=\mathrm{Rb},\mathrm{Li}$; $B=\mathrm{K},\mathrm{Na}$)

The microscopic origin of the low-field $1/9$ magnetization plateau in spin-$1/2$ kagome antiferromagnets remains unresolved. Here, we show that chemical pressure reshapes the hierarchy of fractional magnetization plateaus in the titanium-based kagome family $\mathrm{Cs_8AB_3Ti_{12}F_{48}}$ ($A=\mathrm{Rb},\mathrm{Li}$; $B=\mathrm{K},\mathrm{Na}$). High-field magnetization measurements up to 60 T reveal a robust $1/9$ plateau-like phase in the expanded $\mathrm{Cs_8RbK_3Ti_{12}F_{48}}$ and $\mathrm{Cs_8LiK_3Ti_{12}F_{48}}$ compounds, despite the absence of the conventionally more robust $1/3$ plateau. In contrast, compressed $\mathrm{Cs_8LiNa_3Ti_{12}F_{48}}$ exhibits neither the $1/9$ plateau-like phase nor a quantum-disordered ground state. Specific-heat measurements and first-principles calculations show that lattice expansion preserves a frustrated, fully connected kagome exchange network and gapless quantum-disordered ground states, whereas compression reorganizes the exchange network into weakly coupled quasi-one-dimensional subsystems and induces successive magnetic transitions. These results demonstrate that the $1/9$ and $1/3$ plateaus need not share a common microscopic origin and suggest that the $1/9$ plateau may represent a more universal feature of frustrated spin-$1/2$ kagome magnetism.

cond-mat.str-el

Evidence for multiband gapless superconductivity in the topological superconductor candidate 4Hb-TaS2

We present the ultralow-temperature thermal conductivity measurements on single crystals of transition-metal dichalcogenide material 4Hb-TaS$_{2}$, which has recently been proposed as a topological superconductor candidate. In zero field, a small residual linear term $κ_{0}/T$ is observed, indicating the existence of a residual density of states in the superconducting state. The slow field dependence of $κ_{0}/T$ at low fields rules out the presence of nodes in the superconducting gap, and the S-shaped field dependence across the full field range suggests multiple superconducting gaps in 4Hb-TaS$_{2}$. Our results provide evidence for multiband gapless superconductivity in 4Hb-TaS$_{2}$, and the residual density of states come from certain gapless Fermi surfaces.

cond-mat.supr-con

Gapped quantum spin liquid in a triangular-lattice Ising-type antiferromagnet PrMgAl11O19

In the search of quantum spin liquid (QSLs), spin-1/2 triangular-lattice Heisenberg antiferromagnets (TLHAFs) have always been viewed as fertile soils. Despite the true magnetically-ordered ground state, anisotropy has been considered to play a significant role in stabilizing a QSL state. However, the nature and ground state of the most anisotropic case, the triangular-lattice Ising antiferromagnet (TLIAF), remains elusive and controversial. Here, we report specific heat and thermal conductivity measurements on a newly-discovered Ising-type QSL candidate PrMgAl11O19. At zero field, the magnetic specific heat shows a quadratic temperature dependence. On the contrary, no direct positive magnetic contribution to thermal conductivity was detected, ruling out the presence of mobile gapless fermionic excitations. Further analysis of phonon thermal conductivity reveals that the phonons are strongly scattered by thermally-activated magnetic excitations out of a gap, which exhibits a linear dependence with magnetic field. These results demonstrate that the spin-1/2 TLIAF PrMgAl11O19 has a gapped Z2 QSL ground state.

cond-mat.str-el

Discovery of universal phonon thermal Hall effect in crystals

Thermal Hall effect (THE) in insulator is a remarkable phenomenon that arises from the motion of chargeless quasi-particles under a magnetic field. While magnons or exotic spin excitations were considered as the origin of THE in some magnetic materials, there are more and more evidences suggesting that phonons play a significant role. However, the mechanism behind phonon THE is still unknown. Here we report the observation of THE, including planar THE, in a broad range of non-magnetic insulators and semiconductors: SrTiO3, SiO2 (quartz), MgO, MgAl2O4, Si and Ge. While the presence of antiferrodistortive domains in SrTiO3 and chiral phonons in SiO2 may complicate the interpretation of THE, the striking observations of THE in trivial insulators MgO and MgAl2O4, as well as in high-purity intrinsic semiconductors Si and Ge, demonstrate that phonon THE is a universal property of crystals. Without other effects on phonons such as from magnons, this universal phonon THE is characterized by a scaling law of |\k{appa}_xy| ~ \k{appa}_xx^2. Our results experimentally discover a fundamental physics of phonons in magnetic field, which should come from the direct coupling between atom vibrations and the field. Starting from this universal phonon THE in crystals, all previous interpretations of THE in magnetic or non-magnetic materials need to be reconsidered.

cond-mat.str-el

Multigap nodeless superconductivity in the topological semimetal PdTe

Recently PdTe was identified as a spin-orbit coupled topological Dirac semimetal and was claimed to exhibit both bulk-nodal and surface-nodeless superconducting gaps. Here we report the ultralow-temperature thermal conductivity measurements on PdTe single crystals with $T_c$ = 4.5 K to investigate its superconducting gap structure. It is found that the residual linear term $κ_0/T$ is negligible in zero magnetic field. Furthermore, the field dependence of $κ_0(H)/T$ exhibits an $\sf S$-shaped curve. These results suggest that PdTe has multiple nodeless superconducting gaps, which is at odds with the claimed bulk-nodal gap. The reason for the discrepancy is likely that previous angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy measurements were only performed down to 2 K and cannot observe the smaller nodeless gap. The fully gapped superconducting state in PdTe is compatible with it being a topological superconductor candidate.

cond-mat.supr-con