The symmetry of the spin Hamiltonian in herbertsmithite, a spin-1/2 kagom\'e lattice

ORAL

Abstract

We present magnetization measurements on oriented powder of ZnCu$_{3}$(OH)$_{6}$Cl$_{2}$ along and perpendicular to the orienting field. We find a dramatic difference in the magnetization between the two directions. It is biggest at low measurement fields $H$ or high temperatures. We show that the difference at high temperatures must emerge from Ising-like exchange anisotropy. This allows us to explain muon spin rotation data at $T\rightarrow 0$ in terms of an exotic ferromagnetic ground state.

Authors

  • Oren Ofer

    Physics Department, Technion, Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel

  • Amit Keren

    Department of Physics, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel, Physics Department, Technion, Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel