Large spontaneous Hall effect arising from collinear antiferromagnetism in Ce$_2$PtGe$_6$

TL;DR

This study reveals a large spontaneous Hall effect in Ce$_2$PtGe$_6$, an antiferromagnet with collinear order, driven by symmetry breaking and strong spin-orbit coupling, challenging the notion that AHE requires ferromagnetism.

Contribution

It demonstrates that collinear antiferromagnetic Ce$_2$PtGe$_6$ exhibits a significant spontaneous Hall effect due to symmetry breaking, expanding understanding of AHE origins.

Findings

Ce$_2$PtGe$_6$ shows a pronounced spontaneous Hall effect.

The AFM structure has a propagation vector q=0 with small net magnetization.

The anomalous Hall conductivity exceeds that of related compounds.

Abstract

The spontaneous Hall effect, corresponding to a zero-field anomalous Hall effect (AHE), is induced by symmetry breaking associated with ferromagnetism. Studies in recent years, however, have revealed that antiferromagnetic (AFM) states characterized by magnetic point groups that allow ferromagnetism can also break the relevant symmetries and induce AHE without a large net magnetization. Here, we report that the AFM system Ce$_2$PtGe$_6$ exhibits a pronounced spontaneous Hall effect. Single-crystal neutron scattering experiments demonstrate that Ce$_2$PtGe$_6$ exhibits a collinear AFM structure with a propagation vector $q=0$. The small net magnetization of $\sim 10^{-3}$ $\mu_B$/Ce indicates that the observed AHE arises from symmetry breaking inherent to its AFM structure. The anomalous Hall conductivity (AHC) reaches $300$ $\Omega^{-1}$cm$^{-1}$, which exceeds the intrinsic AHC of related compounds such as Ce$_2$CuGe$_6$ and Ce$_2$PdGe$_6$. This large AHC, most likely attributed to the large spin-orbit coupling of the Pt atoms, provides a platform for understanding the interplay between the Berry curvatures and localized $f$-moments with an AFM configuration.