Noncollinear Ground State from a Four-Spin Chiral Exchange in a Tetrahedral Magnet.

We propose a quartic chiral term m_{x}m_{y}m_{z}∇·m for the energy density of a cubic ferromagnet with broken parity symmetry (point group T_{d}). We demonstrate that this interaction causes a phase transition from a collinear ferromagnetic state to a noncollinear magnetic cone ground state provided its strength exceeds the geometric mean of magnetic exchange and cubic anisotropy. The corresponding noncollinear ground state may also be additionally stabilized by an external magnetic field pointing along certain crystallographic directions. The four-spin chiral exchange does also manifest itself in peculiar magnon spectra and favors spin waves with the wave vector that is perpendicular to the average magnetization direction.

Low-energy magnons in the chiral ferrimagnet Cu2OSeO3: A coarse-grained approach.

We report a comprehensive neutron scattering study of low energy magnetic excitations in the breathing pyrochlore helimagnetic Cu2OSeO3. Fully documenting the four lowest energy magnetic modes that leave the ferrimagnetic configuration of the "strong tetrahedra" intact ( | ℏ ω | < 13 meV), we find gapless quadratic dispersion at the point for energies above 0.2 meV, two doublets separated by 1.6(2) meV at the R point, and a bounded continuum at the X point. Our constrained rigid spin cluster model relates these features to Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya (DM) interactions and the incommensurate helical ground state. Combining conventional spin wave theory with a spin cluster form factor accurately reproduces the measured equal time structure factor through multiple Brillouin zones. An effective spin Hamiltonian describing complex anisotropic intercluster interactions is obtained.

Asymmetric Splitting of an Antiferromagnetic Resonance via Quartic Exchange Interactions in Multiferroic Hexagonal HoMnO_{3}.

The symmetric splitting of two spin-wave branches in an antiferromagnetic resonance (AFR) experiment has been an essential measurement of antiferromagnets for over half a century. In this work, circularly polarized time-domain THz spectroscopy experiments performed on the low symmetry multiferroic hexagonal HoMnO_{3} reveal an AFR of the Mn sublattice to split asymmetrically in an applied magnetic field, with an ≈50% difference in g factors between the high and low energy branches of this excitation. The temperature dependence of the g factors, including a drastic renormalization at the Ho spin ordering temperature, reveals this asymmetry to unambiguously stem from Ho-Mn interactions. Theoretical calculations demonstrate that the AFR asymmetry is not explained by conventional Ho-Mn exchange mechanisms alone and is only reproduced if quartic spin interactions are also included in the spin Hamiltonian. Our results provide a paradigm for the optical study of such novel interactions in hexagonal manganites and low symmetry antiferromagnets in general.

Reentrant Phase Diagram of Yb_{2}Ti_{2}O_{7} in a ⟨111⟩ Magnetic Field.

We present a magnetic phase diagram of rare-earth pyrochlore Yb_{2}Ti_{2}O_{7} in a ⟨111⟩ magnetic field. Using heat capacity, magnetization, and neutron scattering data, we show an unusual field dependence of a first-order phase boundary, wherein a small applied field increases the ordering temperature. The zero-field ground state has ferromagnetic domains, while the spins polarize along ⟨111⟩ above 0.65 T. A classical Monte Carlo analysis of published Hamiltonians does account for the critical field in the low T limit. However, this analysis fails to account for the large bulge in the reentrant phase diagram, suggesting that either long-range interactions or quantum fluctuations govern low field properties.

Hierarchy of bound states in the one-dimensional ferromagnetic Ising chain CoNb2O6 investigated by high-resolution time-domain terahertz spectroscopy.

Kink bound states in the one-dimensional ferromagnetic Ising chain compound CoNb2O6 have been studied using high-resolution time-domain terahertz spectroscopy in zero applied magnetic field. When magnetic order develops at low temperature, nine bound states of kinks become visible. Their energies can be modeled exceedingly well by the Airy function solutions to a 1D Schrödinger equation with a linear confining potential. This sequence of bound states terminates at a threshold energy near 2 times the energy of the lowest bound state. Above this energy scale we observe a broad feature consistent with the onset of the two particle continuum. At energies just below this threshold we observe a prominent excitation that we interpret as a novel bound state of bound states--two pairs of kinks on neighboring chains.

Two-stage ordering of spins in dipolar spin ice on the kagome lattice.

Spin ice, a peculiar thermal state of a frustrated ferromagnet on the pyrochlore lattice, has a finite entropy density and excitations carrying magnetic charge. By combining analytical arguments and Monte Carlo simulations, we show that spin ice on the two-dimensional kagome lattice orders in two stages. The intermediate phase has ordered magnetic charges and is separated from the paramagnetic phase by an Ising transition. The transition to the low-temperature phase is of the three-state Potts or Kosterlitz-Thouless type, depending on the presence of defects in the charge order.

Dynamics of domain walls in magnetic nanostrips.

We express the dynamics of domain walls in ferromagnetic nanowires in terms of collective coordinates, generalizing Thiele's steady-state results. For weak external perturbations the dynamics is dominated by a few soft modes. The general approach is illustrated on the example of a vortex wall relevant to recent experiments with flat nanowires. A two-mode approximation gives a quantitatively accurate description of both the steady viscous motion of the wall in weak magnetic fields and its oscillatory behavior in moderately high fields above the Walker breakdown.

Asymmetric domain nucleation and unusual magnetization reversal in ultrathin Co films with perpendicular anisotropy.

We report unexpected phenomena during magnetization reversal in ultrathin Co films and Co/Pt multilayers with perpendicular anisotropy. Using magneto-optical Kerr microscopy and magnetic force microscopy we have observed asymmetrical nucleation centers where the reversal begins for one direction of the field only and is characterized by an acute asymmetry of domain-wall mobility. We have also observed magnetic domains with a continuously varying average magnetization, which can be explained in terms of the coexistence of three magnetic phases: up, down, and striped.

Wrinkling of a bilayer membrane.

The buckling of elastic bodies is a common phenomenon in the mechanics of solids. Wrinkling of membranes can often be interpreted as buckling under constraints that prohibit large-amplitude deformation. We present a combination of analytic calculations, experiments, and simulations to understand wrinkling patterns generated in a bilayer membrane. The model membrane is composed of a flexible spherical shell that is under tension and that is circumscribed by a stiff, essentially incompressible strip with bending modulus B . When the tension is reduced sufficiently to a value sigma , the strip forms wrinkles with a uniform wavelength found theoretically and experimentally to be lambda=2pi(B/sigma)(1/3). Defects in this pattern appear for rapid changes in tension. Comparison between experiment and simulation further shows that, with larger reduction of tension, a second generation of wrinkles with longer wavelength appears only when B is sufficiently small.

Quantum criticality in an organic magnet.

Exchange interactions between S=1/2 sites in piperazinium hexachlorodicuprate produce a frustrated bilayer magnet with a singlet ground state. We have determined the field-temperature phase diagram by high field magnetization and neutron scattering experiments. There are two quantum critical points: Hc1=7.5 T separates a quantum paramagnet phase from a three dimensional, antiferromagnetically ordered state while Hc2=37 marks the onset of a fully polarized state. The ordered phase, which we describe as a magnon Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC), is embedded in a quantum critical regime with short range correlations. A low temperature anomaly in the BEC phase boundary indicates that additional low energy features of the material become important near Hc1.

Magnetic bistability and controllable reversal of asymmetric ferromagnetic nanorings.

Magnetization reversals through the formation of a vortex state and the rotation of an onion state are two processes with comparable probabilities for symmetric magnetic nanorings with a radius of about 50 nanometers. This magnetic bistability is the manifestation of the competition between the exchange energy and the magnetostatic energy in nanomagnets. The relative probability of the two processes in symmetric nanorings is dictated by the ring geometry and cannot be altered after fabrication. In this work, we report a novel type of nanorings--asymmetric nanorings. By tuning the asymmetry, we can control the fraction of the vortex formation process from about 40% to nearly 100% by utilizing the direction of the external magnetic field. The observed results have been accounted for by the dependence of the domain-wall energy on the local cross-section area for which we have provided theoretical calculations.

Probing spin correlations with phonons in the strongly frustrated magnet ZnCr2O4.

The spin-lattice coupling plays an important role in strongly frustrated magnets. In ZnCr2O4, an excellent realization of the Heisenberg antiferromagnet on the pyrochlore network, a lattice distortion relieves the geometrical frustration through a spin-Peierls-like phase transition at T(c)=12.5 K. Conversely, spin correlations strongly influence the elastic properties of a frustrated magnet. By using infrared spectroscopy and published data on magnetic specific heat, we demonstrate that the frequency of an optical phonon triplet in ZnCr2O4 tracks the nearest-neighbor spin correlations above T(c). The splitting of the phonon triplet below T(c) provides a way to measure the spin-Peierls order parameter.

Antisymmetric magnetoresistance in magnetic multilayers with perpendicular anisotropy.

While magnetoresistance (MR) has generally been found to be symmetric in applied field in nonmagnetic or magnetic metals, we have observed antisymmetric MR in Co/Pt multilayers. Simultaneous domain imaging and transport measurements show that the antisymmetric MR is due to the appearance of domain walls that run perpendicular to both the magnetization and the current, a geometry existing only in materials with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy. As a result, the extraordinary Hall effect gives rise to circulating currents in the vicinity of the domain walls that contributes to the MR. The antisymmetric MR and extraordinary Hall effect have been quantitatively accounted for by a theoretical model.

Structural, orbital, and magnetic order in vanadium spinels.

Vanadium spinels (ZnV2O4, MgV2O4, and CdV2O4) exhibit a sequence of structural and magnetic phase transitions, reflecting the interplay of lattice, orbital, and spin degrees of freedom. We offer a theoretical model taking into account the relativistic spin-orbit interaction, collective Jahn-Teller effect, and spin frustration. Below the structural transition, vanadium ions exhibit ferro-orbital order and the magnet is best viewed as two sets of antiferromagnetic chains with a single-ion Ising anisotropy. Magnetic order, parametrized by two Ising variables, appears at a tetracritical point.