Magnetoelastic coupling anisotropy in the Kitaev material <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mrow><mml:mi>α</mml:mi><mml:mtext>−</mml:mtext><mml:mi>Ru</mml:mi><mml:msub><mml:mi>Cl</mml:mi><mml:mn>3</mml:mn></mml:msub></mml:mrow></mml:math>
Vilmos Kocsis, David A. S. Kaib, Kira Riedl, S. Gaß, Paula Lampen-Kelley, David Mandrus, S. E. Nagler, Nicolás Pérez, Kornelius Nielsch, B. Büchner, A. U. B. Wolter, Roser Valentí
Abstract
In this combined theoretical and experimental research, the authors investigate the anisotropic magnetic and magnetoelastic properties of the quantum spin-liquid candidate $\ensuremath{\alpha}$-RuCl${}_{3}$. They find that the magnetostriction anisotropy is unusually large compared to the anisotropy of the magnetization, which they relate to the strong magnetoelastic \ensuremath{\Gamma}'-type coupling. They also observe nonsymmetric anisotropy for magnetic fields canted out of the honeycomb plane in opposite directions, which they relate to the relative orientation of the magnetic field with respect to the RuCl${}_{6}$ octahedra.