Spin excitations in the kagome-lattice metallic antiferromagnet Fe$_{0.89}$Co$_{0.11}$Sn

TL;DR

This study investigates the spin dynamics in a kagome-lattice antiferromagnetic metal Fe$_{0.89}$Co$_{0.11}$Sn using inelastic neutron scattering, revealing well-defined spin waves below 90 meV and evidence of Dirac magnon features.

Contribution

It provides a detailed analysis of spin excitations in a kagome metal, modeling them with a Heisenberg Hamiltonian and highlighting the impact of itinerant magnetism.

Findings

Well-defined spin waves observed below 90 meV

Identification of a potential Dirac magnon at the K point

Spin excitations influenced by itinerant electron effects

Abstract

Kagome-lattice materials have attracted tremendous interest due to the broad prospect for seeking superconductivity, quantum spin liquid states, and topological electronic structures. Among them, the transition-metal kagome lattices are high-profile objects for the combination of topological properties, rich magnetism, and multiple-orbital physics. Here we report an inelastic neutron scattering study on the spin dynamics of a kagome-lattice antiferromagnetic metal Fe$_{0.89}$Co$_{0.11}$Sn. Although the magnetic excitations can be observed up to $\sim$250 meV, well-defined spin waves are only identified below $\sim$90 meV and can be modeled using Heisenberg exchange with ferromagnetic in-plane nearest-neighbor coupling $J_1$, in-plane next-nearest-neighbor coupling $J_2$, and antiferromagnetic (AFM) interlayer coupling $J_c$ under linear spin-wave theory. Above $\sim$90 meV, the spin waves enter the itinerant Stoner continuum and become highly damped particle-hole excitations. At the K point of the Brillouin zone, we reveal a possible band crossing of the spin wave, which indicates a potential Dirac magnon. Our results uncover the evolution of the spin excitations from the planar AFM state to the axial AFM state in Fe$_{0.89}$Co$_{0.11}$Sn, solve the magnetic Hamiltonian for both states, and confirm the significant influence of the itinerant magnetism on the spin excitations.