quantum spin liquid tagged posts

Scientists from Boson College and Harvard turned to copper to create a first-of-its-kind iridate – Cu2IrO3 – where the natural magnetic order is disrupted, a state known as geometric frustration. Credit: Boston College

Honeycomb lattice meets elusive standards of the Kitaev model. Researchers from Boston College and Harvard have created an elusive honeycomb-structured material capable of frustrating the magnetic properties within it in order to produce a chemical entity known as “spin liquid,” long theorized as a gateway to the free-flowing properties of quantum computing, according to a new report in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.

The first-of-its-kind copper iridate metal oxide – Cu2IrO3 – is one where the natural magnetic order is disrupted, a state known as geometric fru...

The tiny YbMgGaO4 crystal, here perched on a stand for testing, appears to be the next extremely rare material to produce an equally as rare observable quantum spin liquid. Credit: Georgia Tech / Martin Mourigal

Inside a new exotic crystal, physicist Martin Mourigal has observed strong indications of “spooky” action, and lots of it. The results of his experiments, if corroborated over time, would mean that the type of crystal is a rare new material that can produce an observable quantum spin liquid. Currently, only a small handful of materials are believed to possibly have these properties. This new crystal was synthesized for the first time only a year ago.

A “liquid” found inside a solid object may sound confusing to many people...

The excitation of a spin liquid on a honeycomb lattice with neutrons. Credit: Image courtesy of University of Cambridge

This state, quantum spin liquid, causes electrons – thought to be indivisible building blocks of nature – to break into pieces. The researchers, including physicists from the Uni of Cambridge, measured the first signatures of these fractional particles, known as Majorana fermions, in a 2D material with a structure similar to graphene. Their experimental results successfully matched with one of the main theoretical models for a quantum spin liquid, known as a Kitaev model. Quantum spin liquids are mysterious states of matter which are thought to be hiding in certain magnetic materials, but had not been conclusively sighted in nature.

The observation of one of their most in...