Incommensurate magnetism in K2MnS2-xSex and prospects for tunable frustration in a triangular lattice of pseudo-1D spin chains

Ankita Bhutani, Piush Behera, Rebecca D. McAuliffe, Huibo Cao, Ashfia Huq, Melanie J. Kirkham, Clarina R. Dela Cruz, Toby Woods, Daniel P. Shoemaker

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

We report a detailed investigation of K2MnS2 and K2MnSe2 from the K2MnS2 structure type and their magnetic solid solution K2MnS2-xSex and find that compounds of this structure type consist of strongly coupled pseudo-one-dimensional antiferromagnetic chains that collectively represent a frustrated two-dimensional triangular antiferromagnet. Bulk samples of K2MnS2-xSex with 0≤x≤2 are characterized using x-ray diffraction, neutron diffraction, magnetization, and heat-capacity measurements. An incommensurate cycloid magnetic structure with a magnetic propagation vector k=[0.5801] is observed for all samples in K2MnS2-xSex, and the ordering is robust despite a 12% increase in cell volume. Geometric frustration of chains results in incommensurability along a and a two-step magnetic transition. The varying geometries accessible in compounds of this structure type are presented as promising avenues to tune frustration.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number064404
JournalPhysical Review Materials
Volume3
Issue number6
DOIs
StatePublished - Jun 5 2019

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Materials Science
  • Physics and Astronomy (miscellaneous)

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