Vector chiral spin liquid phase in absence of geometrical frustration

TL;DR

This study uses Monte Carlo simulations to demonstrate a vector chiral spin liquid phase at finite temperature in a 2D square lattice model without geometrical frustration, highlighting the role of interchain interactions.

Contribution

First explicit report of a vector chiral spin liquid phase at finite temperature without geometrical frustration in a 2D model.

Findings

Vector chirality order exists without long-range magnetic order.

Interchain interaction strength is crucial for the phase.

Phase identified in a temperature window.

Abstract

Making use of detailed classical Monte Carlo simulations, we study the critical properties of a two dimensional planar spin model on a square lattice composed by weakly interacting helimagnetic chains. We find a large temperature window where the vector chirality order parameter, <k_{jk}>=<S_j x S_k>, the key quantity in multiferroic systems, takes nonzero value in absence of long-range order or quasi-long-range order, so that, our model is the first example where, at finite temperatures, a vector chiral spin liquid phase in absence of geometrical frustration is explicitly reported. We also show that the strength of interchain interaction is fundamental in order to obtain the vector chiral spin liquid phase. The relevance of our results for three-dimensional models is also discussed.