Investigation of the magnetic fluctuations in Tb$_2$Sn$_2$O$_7$ ordered spin ice by high resolution energy-resolved neutron scattering

TL;DR

This study investigates magnetic fluctuations and spin dynamics in the frustrated Tb$_2$Sn$_2$O$_7$ spin ice using neutron scattering, revealing coexistence of short-range and long-range magnetic correlations and a slowdown of spin fluctuations at low temperatures.

Contribution

It provides high-resolution neutron scattering data on spin correlations and dynamics in Tb$_2$Sn$_2$O$_7$, highlighting the coexistence of different magnetic orders and the freezing of spin fluctuations.

Findings

Short-range magnetic correlations of 4 Å at 0.1 K.

Coexistence of ferromagnetic and spin ice order at larger scales.

Spin fluctuations freeze and slow down as long-range order develops.

Abstract

We have studied magnetically frustrated Tb$_2$Sn$_2$O$_7$ by neutron diffraction and high resolution energy-resolved neutron scattering. At 0.1 K, we observe short range magnetic correlations with a typical scale of 4 \AA, close to the near neighbor distance between Tb$^{3+}$ ions. %(3.686 \AA), This short range order coexists with ferromagnetic correlations and long range spin ice order at the scales of 18 and 190 \AA, respectively. Spin dynamics was investigated at a time scale down to 10$^{-9}$s, by energy-resolved experiments on a backscattering spectrometer. We observe a freezing of the spin dynamics for all length-scales, with a strong slowing down of the spin fluctuations when long range order settles in. We discuss the spin fluctuations remaining in the ground state in comparison with previous data obtained by muon spectroscopy.