External magnetic field effects on a distorted kagome antiferromagnet

Slow Magnetic Relaxations in Cobalt(II) Tetranitrate Complexes. Studies of Magnetic Anisotropy by Inelastic Neutron Scattering and High-Frequency and High-Field EPR Spectroscopy

Three mononuclear cobalt(II) tetranitrate complexes (A)₂[Co(NO₃)₄] with different countercations, Ph₄P⁺ (1), MePh₃P⁺ (2), and Ph₄As⁺ (3), have been synthesized and studied by X-ray single-crystal diffraction, magnetic measurements, inelastic neutron scattering (INS), high-frequency and high-field EPR (HF-EPR) spectroscopy, and theoretical calculations. The X-ray diffraction studies reveal that the structure of the tetranitrate cobalt anion varies with the countercation. 1 and 2 exhibit highly irregular seven-coordinate geometries, while the central Co(II) ion of 3 is in a distorted-dodecahedral configuration. The sole magnetic transition observed in the INS spectroscopy of 1-3 corresponds to the zero-field splitting (2(D² + 3E²)^1/2) from 22.5(2) cm^-1 in 1 to 26.6(3) cm^-1 in 2 and 11.1(5) cm^-1 in 3. The positive sign of the D value, and hence the easy-plane magnetic anisotropy, was demonstrated for 1 by INS studies under magnetic fields and HF-EPR spectroscopy. The combined analyses of INS and HF-EPR data yield the D values as +10.90(3), +12.74(3), and +4.50(3) cm^-1 for 1-3, respectively. Frequency- and temperature-dependent alternating-current magnetic susceptibility measurements reveal the slow magnetization relaxation in 1 and 2 at an applied dc field of 600 Oe, which is a characteristic of field-induced single-molecule magnets (SMMs). The electronic structures and the origin of magnetic anisotropy of 1-3 were revealed by calculations at the CASPT2/NEVPT2 level.

Raman spectroscopic study of the frustrated spin 1/2 antiferromagnet clinoatacamite

Raman spectroscopy is a valuable and complementary tool for studying geometrically frustrated magnetic systems due to the intrinsic spin-phonon coupling. Here, we report on a Raman spectroscopic study of the geometrically frustrated spin 1/2 antiferromagnet microcrystalline clinoatacamite Cu2(OH)3Cl, focusing on the anomalous transition into the intermediate phase at T(c1) = 18.1 K. By measuring the temperature-dependent (295-4 K) full spectral profiles and main representative modes in spectral regions from 4000 to 95 cm(-1), we observed probable signatures of successive magnetic transitions near T(c1) = 18 K and T(c2) = 6.4 K in the Raman band frequencies and peak widths of the representative modes. Further, we observed a pronounced Raman spectroscopy background featuring a broad continuum at all temperatures. A quantitative analysis reveals that spin fluctuations may exist on a picosecond time scale in the intermediate phase. The short time scale falls out of the μSR time window; therefore, in the intermediate phase, the μSR study as reported in (2005 Phys. Rev. Lett. 95 057201) apparently only probed the local field of the ordered spins but overlooked the quickly fluctuating ones. This is likely to give a reasonable explanation of the fact that only a small entropy release occurs at T(c1) = 18 K although a long-range order is formed.