Magnetic-field-induced incommensurate to collinear spin order transition in NiBr$_{2}$

TL;DR

This study investigates the magnetic field-induced transition from incommensurate to collinear spin order in NiBr₂, revealing a spin-flop transition that could impact future data storage technologies.

Contribution

It provides experimental evidence of a field-induced transition in NiBr₂, elucidating the mechanisms behind spin helix control in frustrated triangular lattice systems.

Findings

Confirmation of incommensurate magnetic state below T_m=22.8 K

Observation of a field-induced transition to commensurate spin phase

Identification of a spin-flop transition in the basal plane

Abstract

The triangular spin lattice of NiBr$_{2}$ is a canonical example of a frustrated helimagnet that shows a temperature-driven phase transition from a collinear commensurate antiferromagnetic structure to an incommensurate spin helix on cooling. Employing neutron diffraction, bulk magnetization, and magnetic susceptibility measurements, we have studied the f\hspace*{.5pt}ield-induced magnetic states of the NiBr$_{2}$ single crystal. Experimental f\hspace*{.5pt}indings enable us to recapitalize the driving forces of the spin spiral ordering in the triangular spin-lattice systems, in general. Neutron diffraction data conf\hspace*{.5pt}irms, at low temperature below T$_{{\rm m}}$ = 22.8(1) K, the presence of diffraction satellites characteristic of an incommensurate magnetic state, which are symmetrically arranged around main magnetic reflections that evolve just below T$_{{\rm N}}$ = 44.0(1) K. Interestingly, a f\hspace*{.5pt}ield-induced transition from the incommensurate to commensurate spin phase has been demonstrated that enforces spin helix to restore the high temperature compensated antiferromagnetic structure. This spin reorientation can be described as a spin-flop transition in the (\hbox{$a$--$b$}) basal plane of a triangular spin lattice system. These f\hspace*{.5pt}indings offer a new pathway to control the spin helix in incommensurate phases that are currently considered having high technical implications in the next-generation data storage devices.