Spin canting and lattice symmetry in La$_2$CuO$_4$
| Autor: | Hu, Xiao, Sapkota, A., Galea, V. O., Gu, G. D., Zaliznyak, I. A., Tranquada, J. M. |
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| Rok vydání: | 2022 |
| Předmět: | |
| Zdroj: | Phys. Rev. B 107, 094413 (2023) |
| Druh dokumentu: | Working Paper |
| DOI: | 10.1103/PhysRevB.107.094413 |
| Popis: | While the dominant magnetic interaction in La$_2$CuO$_4$ is superexchange between nearest-neighbor Cu moments, the pinning of the spin direction depends on weak anisotropic effects associated with spin-orbit coupling. The symmetry of the octahedral tilt pattern allows an out-of-plane canting of the Cu spins, which is compensated by an opposite canting in nearest-neighbor layers. A strong magnetic field applied perpendicular to the planes can alter the spin canting pattern to induce a weak ferromagnetic phase. In light of recent evidence that the lattice symmetry is lower than originally assumed, we take a new look at the nature of the field-induced spin-rotation transition. Comparing low-temperature neutron diffraction intensities for several magnetic Bragg peaks measured in fields of 0 and 14 T, we find that a better fit is provided by a model in which spins rotate within both neighboring planes but by different amounts, resulting in a noncollinear configuration. This model allows a more consistent relationship between lattice symmetry and spin orientation at all Cu sites. Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures; version accepted for publication |
| Databáze: | arXiv |
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