Gapless Spin Liquid in a Square-kagome Lattice Antiferromagnet
M. Fujihala*, K. Morita*, R. Mole, S. Mitsuda, T. Tohyama, S.-I. Yano, D. Yu, S. Sota, T. Kuwai, A. Koda, H. Okabe, H. Lee, S. Itoh, T. Hawai, T. Masuda, H. Sagayama, A. Matsuo, K. Kindo, S. Ohira-Kawamura, and K. Nakajima
2020/10/01
Observation of a quantum spin liquid (QSL) state is one of the most important goals in condensed-matter physics, as well as the development of new spintronic devices that support next-generation industries. The QSL in two dimensional quantum spin systems is expected to be due to geometrical magnetic frustration, and thus a kagome-based lattice is the most probable playground for QSL. Here, we report the first experimental results of the QSL state on a square-kagome quantum antiferromagnet, KCu6AlBiO4(SO4)5Cl. Comprehensive experimental studies via magnetic susceptibility, magnetisation, heat capacity, muon spin relaxation (μSR), and inelastic neutron scattering (INS) measurements reveal the formation of a gapless QSL at very low temperatures close to the ground state. The QSL behavior cannot be explained fully by a frustrated Heisenberg model with nearest-neighbor exchange interactions, providing a theoretical challenge to unveil the nature of the QSL state.