Survival of itinerant excitations and quantum spin state transitions in YbMgGaO$_4$ with chemical disorder

TL;DR

This study investigates how disorder affects the quantum spin liquid state in YbMgGaO$_4$, providing evidence that the QSL state persists with itinerant excitations despite chemical disorder.

Contribution

It demonstrates that a quantum spin liquid state with itinerant excitations survives in YbMgGaO$_4$ despite site disorder, using comprehensive low-temperature measurements.

Findings

Residual thermal conductivity indicates itinerant excitations.

Quantum spin state transitions observed at ultralow temperatures.

QSL state persists despite chemical disorder.

Abstract

A recent focus of quantum spin liquid (QSL) studies is how disorder/randomness in a QSL candidate affects its true magnetic ground state. The ultimate question is whether the QSL survives disorder or the disorder leads to a "spin-liquid-like" state, such as the proposed random-singlet (RS) state. Since disorder is a standard feature of most QSL candidates, this question represents a major challenge for QSL candidates. YbMgGaO$_4$, a triangular lattice antiferromagnet with effective spin-1/2 Yb$^{3+}$ ions, is an ideal system to address this question, since it shows no long-range magnetic ordering with Mg/Ga site disorder. Despite the intensive study, it remains unresolved as to whether YbMgGaO$_4$ is a QSL or in the RS state. Here, through ultralow-temperature thermal conductivity and magnetic torque measurements, plus specific heat and DC magnetization data, we observed a residual $\kappa_0/T$ term and series of quantum spin state transitions in the zero temperature limit for YbMgGaO$_4$. These observations strongly suggest that a QSL state with itinerant excitations and quantum spin fluctuations survives disorder in YbMgGaO$_4$.