Resonant x-ray scattering reveals possible disappearance of magnetic order under hydrostatic pressure in the Kitaev candidate $\gamma$-Li$_2$IrO$_3
Phys. Rev. B 96, 020402 (2017) Honeycomb iridates such as $\gamma$-Li$_2$IrO$_3$ are argued to realize Kitaev spin-anisotropic magnetic exchange, along with Heisenberg and possibly other couplings. While systems with pure Kitaev interactions are candidates to realize a quantum spin liquid ground sta...
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Main Authors | , , , , , , |
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Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
01.03.2017
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Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | Phys. Rev. B 96, 020402 (2017) Honeycomb iridates such as $\gamma$-Li$_2$IrO$_3$ are argued to realize
Kitaev spin-anisotropic magnetic exchange, along with Heisenberg and possibly
other couplings. While systems with pure Kitaev interactions are candidates to
realize a quantum spin liquid ground state, in $\gamma$-Li$_2$IrO$_3$ it has
been shown that the balance of magnetic interactions leads to the
incommensurate spiral spin order at ambient pressure below 38 K. We study the
fragility of this state in single crystals of $\gamma$-Li$_2$IrO$_3$ using
resonant x-ray scattering (RXS) under applied hydrostatic pressures of up to
3.0 GPa. RXS is a direct probe of the underlying electronic order, and we
observe the abrupt disappearance of the $q$=(0.57, 0, 0) spiral order at a
critical pressure $P_c = 1.5\ $GPa with no accompanying change in the symmetry
of the lattice. This dramatic disappearance is in stark contrast with recent
studies of $\beta$-Li$_2$IrO$_3$ that show continuous suppression of the spiral
order in magnetic field; under pressure, a new and possibly nonmagnetic ground
state emerges. |
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DOI: | 10.48550/arxiv.1703.00499 |