Extremely Weakly Interacting ΔS_{z}=0 and ΔS_{z}=1 Excitations and Evidence for Fractional Quantization in a Magnetization Plateau: CeSb.

ABSTRACT

The plateau at 1/3 of the saturation magnetization M_{s} in the metamagnet CeSb is accompanied by a state of ferromagnetic layers of spins in an up-up-down sequence. We measured M and the specific heat C in the plateau, spin wave analyses of which reveal two distinct branches of excitations. Those with ΔS_{z}=1 as measured by M, coexist with a much larger population of ΔS_{z}=0 excitations measured by C but invisible to M. The large density of ΔS_{z}=0 excitations, their energy gap, and their seeming lack of interaction with ΔS_{z}=1 excitations suggest an analogy with astrophysical dark matter. Additionally, in the middle of the plateau three sharp jumps in M(H) are seen, the size of which, 0.15%M_{s}, is consistent with fractional quantization of magnetization per site in the down-spin layers.