Emergent helical texture of electric dipoles
Dmitry D. Khalyavin, Roger D. Johnson, Fabio Orlandi, Paolo G. Radaelli, Pascal Manuel, Alexei A. Belik
Abstract
A helix of dipoles In magnetic materials, magnetic dipoles typically line up parallel or antiparallel to each other. However, more complex orderings, such as helical, can also occur. Khalyavin et al. found that in the material BiCu 0.1 Mn 6.9 O 12 , a helical order can be formed out of electric rather than magnetic dipoles. The material also harbors an associated structural helical order, which symmetry analysis suggests might be switchable with an applied electric field. Science , this issue p. 680
Topics & Concepts
Antiparallel (mathematics)DipoleCondensed matter physicsMagnetic dipoleTexture (cosmology)Electric dipole momentElectric dipole transitionElectric fieldMaterials scienceDielectricPolarization densityFerromagnetismPerovskite (structure)Phase (matter)ElectronPhysicsHelix (gastropod)DopingLone pairPhase transitionRange (aeronautics)Advanced Condensed Matter PhysicsPhysics of Superconductivity and MagnetismMultiferroics and related materials