Evidence of a bond-nematic phase in LiCuVO4

• Published in: Physical review letters Vol. 109; no. 2; p. 027203
• Main Authors: Mourigal, M, Enderle, M, Fåk, B, Kremer, R K, Law, J M, Schneidewind, A, Hiess, A, Prokofiev, A
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 13.07.2012
• ISSN: 1079-7114
• DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.109.027203

Polarized and unpolarized neutron scattering experiments on the frustrated ferromagnetic spin-1/2 chain LiCuVO4 show that the phase transition at H(Q) of 8 T is driven by quadrupolar fluctuations and that dipolar correlations are short range with moments parallel to the applied magnetic field in the high-field phase. Heat-capacity measurements evidence a phase transition into this high-field phase, with an anomaly clearly different from that at low magnetic fields. Our experimental data are consistent with a picture where the ground state above H(Q) has a next-nearest neighbor bond-nematic order along the chains with a fluidlike coherence between weakly coupled chains.